McDonald's updates careers site terms, adds arbitration and age rules

Applicants filling out McDonald’s careers forms now hit a notice that the site’s terms have changed, putting age rules and dispute language in front of teen applicants, current crew candidates and franchise hiring managers before the first interview.

The company’s online services terms, listed as effective April 7, 2025, say they contain an arbitration agreement, jury and class-action waivers, limitations on liability and other provisions affecting legal rights. For anyone using the careers site, that means the legal ground under the application process is different from a plain online job posting: some disputes tied to the website now fall under a tighter resolution framework instead of the normal court system.

McDonald’s employment FAQ still says restaurant hiring is handled at the store level, not through one central corporate funnel. It also says age requirements and hiring policies can vary between company-owned restaurants and independently owned franchise restaurants, and that applicants should contact the store they want to work at and use the restaurant locator for local hiring information. That split matters for workers because the same brand can operate under different hiring rules depending on who owns the restaurant.

The careers page also repeats McDonald’s equal opportunity language, saying it does not discriminate on protected bases including race, color, sex, religion, national origin, citizenship status, age, disability, veteran or military status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, genetic information and other legally recognized protected bases. McDonald’s says qualified individuals with disabilities may receive reasonable accommodation during the application or hiring process and, for corporate-owned restaurant roles, gives applicants a contact point at mcdhrbenefits@us.mcd.com.

The timing lands against continued scrutiny of McDonald’s franchise labor practices, especially around minors. The U.S. Department of Labor said in May 2023 that three Kentucky franchisees paid $212,000 in fines after federal investigators found 305 minors, including two 10-year-olds, working illegally at 62 locations in four states. The department later said franchisees in Louisiana and Texas violated child labor rules, while earlier findings in Pennsylvania cited 154 minors ages 14 and 15 working at times and for hours not allowed by law. In Tennessee, federal officials said a 15-year-old was assigned hazardous fryer work after suffering hot-oil burns.

The same youth-worker scrutiny has shown up in harassment cases too. The EEOC has brought or resolved multiple sexual-harassment cases involving McDonald’s franchisees and young workers, including a nearly $2 million 2023 settlement involving AMTCR and a 2026 settlement involving Arch Fellow North. For applicants, the practical takeaway is straightforward: the careers site is not just a form, it is part of the legal setup around where you apply, who hires you and how age rules are enforced store by store.