McDonald’s Contributes £457.2 Million To The Scottish Economy, Employing More Than 15,000 People

Despite the turbulence of the last five years, with many businesses facing challenging times, McDonald’s has continued to invest in local towns and cities across the UK, where restaurants are often at the heart of the community.

The ‘McDonald’s at 50’ report,was produced to understand the value McDonald’s has added to the UK economy, local communities, its employees, customers and suppliers since it first started operating in the UK. The new report was commissioned to mark McDonald’s 50th anniversary in the UK and builds on economic data published five years ago.

It looks at McDonald’s significant contribution to the UK’s cities, through jobs created in restaurants and the wider economic impact through its supply chain. Full breakdown of Scotland’s major cities:

City

Total jobs created

Total GVA created

Glasgow

2,935

£81.2m

Edinburgh

1,590

£43.7m

Aberdeen

795

N/A

Dundee

395

N/A

In addition to restaurant jobs, Scotland is home to one of McDonald’s biggest suppliers; Smith Anderson Group in Kirkcaldy, Fife, which supplies paper bags and food packaging to all UK restaurants. Through partners, such as Smith Anderson Group - and the wider induced effects of its operations and supply chain – McDonald’s contributes a further £159 million per annum to the Scottish economy and 2,060 extra jobs.

McDonald’s believes in playing an active role in the local communities in which it operates and through its programme, Makin’ It, in partnership with BBC Children in Need, is committed to partnering every restaurant across the UK with youth services. The initiative harnesses the power of youth work to provide safe, welcoming spaces in restaurants and funds programmes to provide training, real-world experience and opportunities for young people. Successful local McDonald’s partnerships include Youth 2000 (Dalkeith), G20 Youth Foundation (Glasgow) and 6VT - Edinburgh City Youth Café (Edinburgh).

Franchisees and their teams go above and beyond to give back to and champion their local communities. Some recent highlights include a Fun Football event in George Square, Glasgow, a litter pick around Seaton Park in Aberdeen and a £25,000 donation to CHAS from the McDonald’s in the Community fund.

McDonald’s Franchisee Jim McLean, who owns and operates nine restaurants across Scotland, said: “Creating and sustaining jobs across Scotland is of huge importance to me. The fact that we have been able to make a significant financial contribution to the area is something my fellow Franchisees and I are very proud of. We have a whole host of opportunities available to young people and it’s great to see so many of them taking advantage and gaining qualifications while they work – there is no longer a need to decide between learning and earning. It’s also been amazing to see the impact McDonald’s restaurants are having across local communities. From community initiatives to litter picks and outreach programmes, our restaurants and crew are constantly thinking of ways to support their local communities.”

The report finds that overall, the business and its supply chain is estimated to be worth more than £7.25 billion annually to the UK economy (including wider, induced effects) – and that over the past 50 years, the total economic contribution is £94.45 billion, with £51.56 billion spent with UK supply chain businesses. McDonald’s growth over the last 50 years has seen the level of employment supported by McDonald’s and Franchisees increase from one restaurant in 1974 to 94,600 direct employees in 2013 to 171,415 in 2023.