By Sammie Jones-
McDonald’s chief executive Steve Easterbrook has been fired for failing to resist having a relationship with an employee.
Although the dating was consensual between the pair, Mr Easterbrook was aware of rules forbidding him from establishing a relationship with a subordinate employee. His breach of the rules meant he had “violated company policy” and shown “poor judgement”. Sexual relationships between CEO’s and employees are generally believed to potential;y compromise standards , allowing the possibility of a conflict of interest, including partiality where issues may arise amongst employees.
The businessman acknowledged the error of judgement in sparking the relationship.
“Given the values of the company, I agree with the board that it is time for me to move on,” he said.
Divorced Mr Easterbrook, 52, first worked for McDonald’s in 1993 as a manager in London before working his way up the company.
He left in 2011 to become boss of Pizza Express and then Asian food chain Wagamama, before returning to McDonald’s in 2013.
Mr Easterbrook is widely credited with revitalising the firm’s menus and restaurants, by remodelling stores and using better ingredients. The value of its shares more than doubled during his tenure. Under his leadership, McDonald’s also expanded its delivery and mobile payment options to emphasise convenience.
The fast food giant’s board voted on Watford-born Mr Easterbrook’s departure on Friday after a review. Mr Easterbrook faced scrutiny for his $15.9m (£12.3m) pay packet in 2018. It was 2,124 times the median employee salary of $7,473. He will be replaced by Chris Kempczinski, most recently president of McDonald’s USA, with immediate effect.
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