A Week in the Life of a McDonald’s Cashier • Hacker News Board

Re: A Week in the Life of a McDonald’s Cashier

#31

Post by larnmar » Thu, Dec 05, 2019, 7:35 PM UTC

x2f10 wrote: post #18

Her job is already going away; McDonald's around me have already replaced cashiers with kiosks. Unionizing and requiring $15/hr + full benefits is only going to accelerate McDonald's automation plans. Is the answer to fight for $15/hr or is the answer to go back to school, apply to more jobs, and/or go into a trade? Honest question.

Honestly I think the solution is emigration.

There are places in the world where you can make a living without any particular skill set, but I don’t think the US, or any other first-world country, should really be among them.

The US needs immigration reform to bring more high-skilled people into the country, but it also needs emigration reform to find new homes for people who can’t necessarily make a reasonable living in a first-world country.

Re: A Week in the Life of a McDonald’s Cashier

#32

Post by sebringj » Thu, Dec 05, 2019, 7:35 PM UTC

Before I had a programmer job when i was younger, i completely 100% empathize with her in having those types of thankless jobs and constantly being tired. I can't imagine being trapped in that going forward. I bootstrapped my situation but I had a nice parents, a middle-class upbringing and a decent school to start everything, and a knack for programming... but I know/met so many who do not have this leg up in whatever they do in those experiences and have to continue that scraping by. This is why I lean toward UBI. I know both people who really want to succeed but are stuck from so many things or even people that will never try. It is what it is and is only getting worse with automation. I feel sorry for people that have not experienced these things that insist of the work ethic being the answer and are blind to reality.

Re: A Week in the Life of a McDonald’s Cashier

#33

Post by [deleted] » Thu, Dec 05, 2019, 7:36 PM UTC

justinsaccount wrote: post #28

> It’s 8 p.m. and my scheduled shift is over, but they asked me to stay later > The bus stops running at 10 p.m. on Sunday, but McDonald's asked me to stay until close at 1 a.m. They asked me to stay because they need my help. Thats not a job, that's an abusive relationship.

[deleted]

Re: A Week in the Life of a McDonald’s Cashier

#34

Post by NicoJuicy » Thu, Dec 05, 2019, 7:37 PM UTC

One of the best services a supermarket can have is: free-policy when you have to wait > 2 people.

They do it with human cashier's and are insanely popular and low-cost.

No one truelly cares about self-service, it's just hype.

( Personal opinion)

Re: A Week in the Life of a McDonald’s Cashier

#35

Post by reaperducer » Thu, Dec 05, 2019, 7:37 PM UTC

x2f10 wrote: post #18

Her job is already going away; McDonald's around me have already replaced cashiers with kiosks. Unionizing and requiring $15/hr + full benefits is only going to accelerate McDonald's automation plans. Is the answer to fight for $15/hr or is the answer to go back to school, apply to more jobs, and/or go into a trade? Honest question.

McDonald's around me have already replaced cashiers with kiosks

Here, too. But usually half of them are broken in one way or another, like the touch screen doesn't respond or the receipt printer is out of paper, or something I saw in a TV commercial isn't in the menu structure, or the pricing isn't the same as in an ad, etc... These are things a cashier is still needed for.

As an aside, I find it curious that my local McD only got the kiosks maybe two years ago, but I used them in Germany almost 20 years ago. They are fantastic for when you can't speak the local language.

Edit:

Is the answer to fight for $15/hr or is the answer to go back to school, apply to more jobs, and/or go into a trade?

The vast majority of McD cashiers I see are in no position to go back to school or change jobs. They're too old, low-skilled, physically constrained, or low-education to do that.

I work in an organization that deals with the poor a lot. If you're 50 years old and only have a fifth-grade education and need to survive, you don't have the time to go to school. You're probably working two or three jobs just to have a place to live.

Re: A Week in the Life of a McDonald’s Cashier

#36

Post by KingMachiavelli » Thu, Dec 05, 2019, 7:37 PM UTC

> She says she plans to work for as long as possible, trying to provide for her baby. As part time employees, we don’t get health insurance or paid sick days.

And the cycle repeats. I know it's a cold, impersonal take, but when life sucks, having a child is going to make it worse and most likely just lead to a new generation of suffering.

As much as a $15 minimum wage might help, even at $12 in Colorado, McDonald's already has touchscreen machines you can order from instead of at the counter - which might already not be manned all the time (it seems that now they often have a single person taking orders at the front counter and the drive through). So I'm skeptical if $15 minimum wage would work. It might work for the hospital job, at least the margin's there are higher and they are less able to automate the job away.

Re: A Week in the Life of a McDonald’s Cashier

#37

Post by [deleted] » Thu, Dec 05, 2019, 7:37 PM UTC

wil421 wrote: post #5

moonbug wrote: post #2

Americans: fix your healthcare system.

If she’s only making $9.50 an hour she qualifies for some pretty cheap if not free healthcare. When I was in college working in a restaurant it was between $30-40 a month for healthcare I was making approx $20-25k a year. Healthcare is mentioned exactly one time in the article.

[deleted]

Re: A Week in the Life of a McDonald’s Cashier

#38

Post by ogre_magi » Thu, Dec 05, 2019, 7:37 PM UTC

threatofrain wrote: post #26

jdkee wrote: post #9

Unions, unions, unions.

The most powerful tool in any union is a strike, but McDonalds is okay with that now, and won't be bringing in any scabs to replace those who are gone. They will be replaced by machines and the consumers are going to see a value-add.

I get McDonald's for breakfast occasionally and I really, really like the kiosks. A much better and more reliable ordering experience.

Re: A Week in the Life of a McDonald’s Cashier

#39

Post by Phenix88be » Thu, Dec 05, 2019, 7:37 PM UTC

x2f10 wrote: post #18

Her job is already going away; McDonald's around me have already replaced cashiers with kiosks. Unionizing and requiring $15/hr + full benefits is only going to accelerate McDonald's automation plans. Is the answer to fight for $15/hr or is the answer to go back to school, apply to more jobs, and/or go into a trade? Honest question.

> is the answer to go back to school

Without money ? My girlfriend was a cashier. Now she's studying law because my job can provide for us and we have free healtcare in belgium. Otherwise it would be impossible !

> apply to more jobs

That basically mean more slavery since she will apply for job that pay like McDonalds. It wont solve any problem.

> and/or go into a trade

I don't understand what your mean here.

Re: A Week in the Life of a McDonald’s Cashier

#40

Post by dpq » Thu, Dec 05, 2019, 7:37 PM UTC

x2f10 wrote: post #18

Her job is already going away; McDonald's around me have already replaced cashiers with kiosks. Unionizing and requiring $15/hr + full benefits is only going to accelerate McDonald's automation plans. Is the answer to fight for $15/hr or is the answer to go back to school, apply to more jobs, and/or go into a trade? Honest question.

I suspect we'll see high-paying jobs getting automated even faster, so her newly acquired skills may become obsolete before she graduates (also, she won't be able to afford the tuition fees). I don't think there's an answer to this problem: Nash equilibria cannot be easily beaten unless someone is imposing the rules and enforcing compliance... which probably won't happen.