MNN - Mother Nature Network

Even though the unemployment rate dropped to 8.8 percent in March, there are still millions of Americans out of work. McDonald’s hopes to make a dent in this figure during a one-day hiring spree. On April 19, 2011, McDonald’s will hire 50,000 new workers at its 14,000 stores across the country.

 

The company will have part-time and full-time opportunities available with positions ranging from entry-level jobs to management. The average pay is $8.30 an hour, a bit higher than the federal minimum wage of $7.25 hour. Managers can expect to earn about $50,000 a year.

 

While 50,000 new jobs sounds great, these are not the kind of jobs that are going to have a significant long-term impact on families. An individual working full-time earning the average hourly rate will have an annual salary of just over $17,000. If this worker were single with no kids, he would be earning just over 150 percent of the federal poverty level. If a child were added to the family, making it a two-person household, then the pay would be slightly above the federal poverty level. This is definitely not a sustainable income in the long term.

 

The good news is that this position could be a springboard to better opportunities with the McDonald’s. The person that gets hired as a cashier today could be a store manager in a few years earning a salary that is above the national average. These positions could also be used as a temporary source of income while the individual looks for a better job.

 

I am looking forward to the official April 2011 unemployment report. I want to see the impact that this massive one-day hiring spree will have on the overall job growth figures for the month.