McDonald's Corporation — Ethics Grade C-

McDonald's Corporation receives an overall ethics grade of C- (40/100) on CancelCo's corporate accountability database. Sector: Fast Food. Market cap: Large Cap.

Category scores

• labor: 20
• privacy: 70
• consumer: 35
• environment: 25
• humanRights: 50

Documented incidents (4)

• Child labor violations (high, 2022) — DOL found minors as young as 10 working at franchises. Over 300 locations cited for child labor law violations.
• Poverty wages despite record profits (high, 2023) — Average crew member earns below living wage while company reported $8.5B in net income. Workers reliant on public assistance.
• Marketing junk food to children (medium, 2021) — Spent $1.5B+ on advertising targeting children despite childhood obesity epidemic. 40% of marketing budget aimed at under-18.
• Deforestation in beef supply chain (high, 2022) — Linked to Amazon deforestation through Brazilian beef supply chain. Slow to implement zero-deforestation commitments.

Documented good deeds

• Ronald McDonald House Charities — RMHC provided housing for 6.7M families of sick children near hospitals worldwide.

Ethical alternatives

• Chipotle — Committed to responsibly raised meat and organic produce. Living wage initiatives underway.
• Sweetgreen — Locally sourced, transparent supply chain. Carbon-neutral since 2023.