McDonald’s trials social distancing measures ahead of reopening
McDonald’s will trial reopening its restaurants behind closed doors this week as the fast food giant prepares for life after lockdown.
The company said it will carry out some operational tests this week to “explore what our reopening might look like”. The restaurant will remain closed to the public while tests are carried out.
McDonald’s UK and Ireland chief executive Paul Pomroy said tests will include trialling social distancing measures for members of staff, personal protective equipment options and opening in a limited capacity.
In a statement today Pomroy said: “Restarting our business is not an easy task even when reopening in a limited capacity.
“We have set ourselves some key criteria for reopening, all of which take time – first and foremost ensuring the wellbeing of our people and creating the right environment for them to return to work; secondly ensuring we have enough supply of fresh produce; and finally working in-step with government guidelines to ensure the safety of our customers. “
He added: “For now we remain closed, and will only reopen when we are absolutely confident we can have the right measures in place to ensure everyone’s wellbeing.”
Yesterday high street cafe chain Greggs announced that it will trial reopening stores for takeaway and delivery only before rolling the new format out across its more than 2,000 sites in the UK.
US burger chain Shake Shack also announced plans to reopen branches in Canary Wharf and Tottenham Court Road.