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McDonald’s shuts down in Russia after pressure on social media
https://www.whatjobs.com/news/business-news/mcdonalds-shuts-down-in-russia
By Nithya Bose in Business News, posted March 10, 2022
McDonald’s is pausing its operations in Russia over the ongoing war with Ukraine.
The fast-food giant's CEO Chris Kempczinski confirmed: "McDonald's has decided to temporarily close all our restaurants in Russia and pause all operations in the market."
There were 847 McDonald's restaurant chains in Russia at the end of last year.
McDonald’s works through franchises in most countries, and initially continued the functioning of 84 percent of locations in Russia despite Vladmir Putin's invasion of Ukraine, which has been universally condemned.
READ MORE: HOW MCDONALD’S BECAME THE BIGGEST FAST-FOOD BRAND IN THE WORLD
The burger giant had generated a revenue of nine per cent the previous year from its Russian outlets along with another 108 restaurants in Ukraine.
Kempczinski said: "In Russia, we employ 62,000 people who have poured their heart and soul into our McDonald's brand to serve their communities.
"We work with hundreds of local, Russian suppliers and partners who produce the food for our menu and support our brand."
"And we serve millions of Russian customers each day who count on McDonald's.
"In the thirty-plus years that McDonald's has operated in Russia, we've become an essential part of the 850 communities in which we operate. At the same time, our values mean we cannot ignore the needless human suffering unfolding in Ukraine.”
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The measure was taken after a backlash from social media platforms like Twitter when people made hashtags to boycott the major companies for their continuing operation in Russia.
New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli called out McDonald’s and other brands like PepsiCo. Previously, he urged the companies to reconsider their businesses in Russia, before the formal announcement was made by McDonald’s.
DiNapoli said: "Companies like McDonald's and PepsiCo, which have a large footprint in Russia, need to consider whether doing business in Russia is worth the risk during this extraordinarily volatile time."
Source: CNN Business
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