McDonaldization: The Dehumanization of Workers

McDonaldization: The Dehumanization of Workers

McDonaldization is becoming the new wave of job types where workers are being deskilled, dehumanized and exploited. Machines are taking over tasks which the employees used to do such as bank machines (interact). The McDonaldized jobs now instead of making the employee do all the work they have the customer working too, for example when the customer cleans up after eating. These jobs are becoming less interactive and personal because workers are becoming dehumanized and only allowed to follow a script, there is also the fact that fast food Company’s use drive through, where limited interaction occurs and are many restrictions. These types of jobs which the author George Ritzer labeled “McJobs” are run by organizational principals such as; efficiency, uniformity, predictability and control.

The fast-food industry accounts for 40 percent of people employed in the restaurant business (of all types), of an approximate 6 million workers. The author gives evidence to show how fast-food highly depends on teenagers to work because the statistics are, about 70 percent of the workers are twenty years old and under, this was most likely their first type of job. This industry is mainly part time employee’s whose average work week consists of 29.5 hours. The rates of staff changes are quite regular, only about more than 50 percent stay for longer than a year. These jobs are mainly filled by lower

classes and excessive amounts of mino...