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McDonald's wants`McJob' dictionary definition changed

Fast food giant McDonald's is set to begin a campaign to redefine "McJob" entries in British dictionaries, which it believes are both incorrect and insulting to its workers, the Financial Times (FT) reported yesterday.

"We believe that it is out of date, out of touch with reality and most importantly it is insulting to those talented, committed, hard-working people who serve the public every day," wrote David Fairhurst, the company's chief people officer in northern Europe, FT said.

Public petition

Citing a copy of Fairhurst's letter to cultivate support for the campaign, the business daily said McDonald's plans a "high-profile public petition" to get the definition changed.

The Oxford English Dictionary describes a McJob as "an unstimulating, low-paid job with few prospects, [especially] one created by the expansion of the service sector."

FT, however, said that Caterer and Hotelkeeper magazine recently named the restaurant chain the "best place to work in hospitality," and McDonald's was also the first large British employer to be accredited under the government's "Investors in People" scheme.

Rectification

Fairhurst wrote that the definition of a McJob should be changed to "reflect a job that is stimulating, rewarding and offers genuine opportunities for career progression and skills that last a lifetime."

A spokeswoman for the Oxford English Dictionary told FT: "We monitor changes in the language and reflect these in our definitions, according to the evidence we find."
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