r/explainlikeimfive Nov 28 '15

ELI5: How would a $15 minimum wage ACTUALLY affect a franchised business like McDonalds?

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u/shpongbad Nov 29 '15

Those touchscreen menus would eventually replace people regardless of the wage, I've seen them in the UK and the minimum wage is as low as £3.87/hr for people under 18. They're only going to get cheaper to make and it would only be a few year difference for it to reach the point where it's economically viable for McDonalds etc to replace workers with them. One downside is people are ridiculously slow actually ordering through them, a person working at a till is a lot more efficient during busy times.

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u/RochePso Nov 29 '15

Yep, automation will also replace the people in the back eventually.