McDonald's Restaurants (Taiwan) Co shut down 15 unprofitable branches across Taiwan yesterday, laying off 390 employees.
"After a six-month evaluation, the company has decided to shut down four stores in Taipei, five stores in Kaohsiung and six in central Taiwan," said Ronnie Liao (廖幸安), the company's communications manager. Some 340 axed staff are part-timers he said.
Liao refused to disclose the company's sales figures, but did say revenues this year are on par with expectations. He attributed the shuttering of restaurants to an array of factors.
"The closures are due to the company's business re-adjustment in the wake of rising store rental prices, relocation of commercial districts and the slower-than-expected economy," Liao said,
He added that there was no problem with the company's operation and management.
McDonald's regional manager in southern Taiwan, Hung Ming-sheng (洪明生), nevertheless, yesterday admitted to reporters that the five Kaohsiung stores have been losing money for more than two years.
He said that the company remains confident in its Kaohsiung business over the long term, but currently, construction of the city's mass rapid transit system has contributed to a slump in business in the area.
Hung further promised to hire back some part-timers during the Lunar New Year holiday in February if a business pickup necessitates rehiring staff.
The abrupt closure decision, however, yesterday came as a surprise to most employees, who learned of the closure the night before but were instructed to show up for a final briefing.
Laid-off staff were given an extra month's pay and proportional year-end bonuses which would normally be paid out at before the Lunar New Year, according to Liao.
The communication manager did not specify whether the company has any expansion plans next year. Nevertheless, he did say, "The company is always looking for new business opportunities."
Before the closure, McDonald's had a total of 362 branches nationwide, including 10 newly opened stores this year. When McDonald's opened its first restaurant in Taiwan in 1984, it broke the all-time, one-day global sales record for the company.
In early November, US-based McDonald's Corp announced plans to close a total of 175 restaurants worldwide, but Taiwan was not included on the closure list.
Taiwan is projected to lose a working-age population of about 6.67 million people in two waves of retirement in the coming years, as the nation confronts accelerating demographic decline and a shortage of younger workers to take their place, the Ministry of the Interior said. Taiwan experienced its largest baby boom between 1958 and 1966, when the population grew by 3.78 million, followed by a second surge of 2.89 million between 1976 and 1982, ministry data showed. In 2023, the first of those baby boom generations — those born in the late 1950s and early 1960s — began to enter retirement, triggering
ECONOMIC BOOST: Should the more than 23 million people eligible for the NT$10,000 handouts spend them the same way as in 2023, GDP could rise 0.5 percent, an official said Universal cash handouts of NT$10,000 (US$330) are to be disbursed late next month at the earliest — including to permanent residents and foreign residents married to Taiwanese — pending legislative approval, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. The Executive Yuan yesterday approved the Special Act for Strengthening Economic, Social and National Security Resilience in Response to International Circumstances (因應國際情勢強化經濟社會及民生國安韌性特別條例). The NT$550 billion special budget includes NT$236 billion for the cash handouts, plus an additional NT$20 billion set aside as reserve funds, expected to be used to support industries. Handouts might begin one month after the bill is promulgated and would be completed within
The National Development Council (NDC) yesterday unveiled details of new regulations that ease restrictions on foreigners working or living in Taiwan, as part of a bid to attract skilled workers from abroad. The regulations, which could go into effect in the first quarter of next year, stem from amendments to the Act for the Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals (外國專業人才延攬及僱用法) passed by lawmakers on Aug. 29. Students categorized as “overseas compatriots” would be allowed to stay and work in Taiwan in the two years after their graduation without obtaining additional permits, doing away with the evaluation process that is currently required,
RELEASED: Ko emerged from a courthouse before about 700 supporters, describing his year in custody as a period of ‘suffering’ and vowed to ‘not surrender’ Former Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) chairman Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) was released on NT$70 million (US$2.29 million) bail yesterday, bringing an end to his year-long incommunicado detention as he awaits trial on corruption charges. Under the conditions set by the Taipei District Court on Friday, Ko must remain at a registered address, wear a GPS-enabled ankle monitor and is prohibited from leaving the country. He is also barred from contacting codefendants or witnesses. After Ko’s wife, Peggy Chen (陳佩琪), posted bail, Ko was transported from the Taipei Detention Center to the Taipei District Court at 12:20pm, where he was fitted with the tracking
RSS