McDonald's boosts franchisee requirements, seeks to bolster diversity

McDonald's has faced criticism from Black-owned franchises, some of whom have filed lawsuits alleging racial discrimination

McDonald’s Corp., the world’s largest fast-food chain, is overhauling how it awards franchises in the US as part of its efforts to increase diversity, according to an internal message viewed by Bloomberg News.
 

The company will standardize the way it reviews applications for all potential franchisees. Previously, the children and spouses of existing operators were reviewed separately from new applicants.

McDonald’s will also assess its franchise operators every 20 years, evaluating restaurant owners based on factors like performance to determine whether their agreements should be renewed. If franchise owners want to manage more locations, McDonald’s will review those requests separately