Photo: TikTok / Tupungato / Shutterstock
She explained that she worked extremely hard to become a manager, which doesn't leave room for people to try and job-shame her.
By Nia Tipton — Written on Apr 19, 2023
Most people have preconceived notions about the wages people who work in the fast food industry make, but one woman decided to set the record straight.
In a TikTok video, a woman who works as a McDonald's manager was quick to clarify that she gets paid more than enough working at the fast food establishment after someone attempted to call her out for choosing to work in a food service industry job.
As a McDonald's manager, she says she makes 'six figures' and enjoys working at her job because of it.
In her video, Elle, who works as a manager for McDonald's, responded to a negative comment left on one of her videos, where someone had attempted to job-shame her. "This is the only job she could get. Who WANTS to be a manager at McDonald's," the comment read.
"Look how cute! We're job-shaming," Elle sarcastically quipped as she read aloud the comment. "Considering that we're the world's largest restaurant chain and we're in over 100 countries, apparently a lot of people want to be managers at McDonald's."
Elle continued, saying that at every McDonald's, there needs to be a general manager, which is a position that most people have no problem working towards. She also clarified that she wasn't simply appointed the manager of McDonald's on a whim, but that she worked to get the position.
"I didn't just get my job. I worked very, very hard for it, for a lot of years. You know, [as in] I invested in it, like a 'career,' because that's what this is," Elle added. As for how much she makes a year working as the manager, Elle revealed that it's actually much more than people usually think.
"I'm a salaried employee. I don't know about you, but I enjoy making six figures a year," she shared. "I enjoy getting bonuses, I enjoy my job."
According to ZipRecruiter, while annual salaries can be as high as $127,000 and as low as $17,000, the majority of McDonald's management salaries currently range between $30,000 to $60,000 with top earners making $91,500 throughout the United States.
People sided with Elle and pointed out that working a food service industry job shouldn't be a shameful occupation.
In the comments section, many TikTok users praised Elle for working hard and being able to work her way up the management ladder, while others pointed out that working any food service industry job shouldn't be frowned upon.
"I’m an assistant manager at Burger King and I love it," one Tiktok user shared. "A job is a job and people on the outside just see it as a fast food job."
Another user agreed, writing that they make enough money to survive working at a fast food restaurant. "My 'fast food job' pays my mortgage and car payment. They can make fun all they want [but it] pays real money."
"People act like something is wrong with food service employees but expect perfect service when they go get food… like... huh?!" a third user wrote.
A fourth user expressed gratitude for Elle being transparent about her job, writing, "Literally thank you for posting this. Sometimes I feel I’m not at a good enough job, but there’s always room for growth and opportunities."
Nia Tipton is a writer living in Brooklyn. She covers pop culture, social justice issues, and trending topics.