McDonald’s Closes Employee Site Following ‘Don’t Eat Fast Food!’ Gaffe

In one year, McDonald’s has hit the gaffe jackpot twice. First, they inadvertently demonstrated that it is impossible to live on the minimum wage in a not-so-brilliant financial planning guide to employees. And now, they are giving nutrition and dietary advice recommending that employees not choose from the ol’ Mickey D’s menu:

On its employee resources website, McDonald’s offers workers reasonable if not unexpected advice for a healthier diet. McDonald’s employees should steer clear of fast food, the website warns, because meal consisting of burger, fries, and a soda cause weight gain.

“Fast foods are quick, reasonably priced, and readily available alternatives to home cooking,” one post on the McResource Line site says. “While convenient and economical for a busy lifestyle, fast foods are typically high in calories, fat, saturated fat, sugar, and salt and may put people at risk for becoming overweight.”

Illustrating this point is a picture of what looks suspiciously like McDonald’s food. At 550 calories, McDonald’s Big Mac delivers nearly 50 percent of one’s daily recommended fat. That’s not including the fries and soda.

Late Sunday, Raw Story reported that McDonald’s has pulled the plug on their employee resource Web site:

Fast food giant McDonald’s confirmed on Wednesday that it had closed down a site offering employees questionable advice, but not before one last seemingly awkward “tip” was brought to light.

CNN reported on Wednesday that the company shut down the “McResource Line,” even though the site claimed it was working on “upgrades.”

“A combination of factors has led us to re-evaluate and we’ve directed the vendor to take down the website,” the company said in a separate statement. “Between links to irrelevant or outdated information, along with outside groups taking elements out of context, this created unwarranted scrutiny and inappropriate commentary. None of this helps our McDonald’s team members.”

The website’s latest mishap involved a recommendation for employees that they avoid foods like cheeseburgers or french fries — both among McDonald’s staple offerings — in favor of healthier fare.

By: dave-dr-gonzo

David Hirsch, a.k.a. Dave "Doctor" Gonzo*, is a renegade record producer, video producer, writer, reformed corporate shill, and still-registered lobbyist for non-one-percenter performing artists and musicians. He lives in a heavily fortified compound in one of Manhattan's less trendy neighborhoods.

* Hirsch is the third person to use the pseudonym, a not-so-veiled tribute to journalist and author Hunter S. Thompson, with the permission of his predecessors Gene Gaudette of American Politics Journal (currently webmaster and chief bottlewasher at Liberaland) and Stephen Meese at Smashmouth Politics.