A group of 13 Elles Rd and Dee St McDonald’s staff members were joined by about four supporters and Unite Union members outside the Elles Rd restaurant as they protested against their wages.
Unite Union Otago Southland regional organiser Simon Edmunds said the offer had been 20 cents above minimum wage — well below inflation — and amounted to a really serious pay cut.
"For McDonald’s to be offering a pay cut to its workers, in addition to no back pay, no union bonus, and some conditions that aren’t in there as well, is hugely frustrating to members," Mr Edmunds said.
Elles Rd McDonald’s staff member Nathan Raivaru said he and his co-workers did not get paid nearly enough for the hard work they did.
"The offer that they put through was ridiculous, it was a joke," Mr Raivaru said.
"At the moment it’s just horrendously understaffed [and] there’s not enough people on [and] they’ve cut labour."
He believed that McDonald’s competitors Burger King and KFC paid better than his employers.
South City McDonald’s staff member Ella Ladbrook said staff deserved better pay and better treatment.
"We do a lot for the community as well. We do stuff for Ronald McDonald House," Ms Ladbrook said.
"I feel we should be more respected for what we do for our community."
McDonald’s spokesman Simon Kenny told the Otago Daily Times earlier in the week it was bargaining for a new collective agreement with Unite Union.
