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Fast Food Workers

Work Environment

Fast food restaurants need to meet the safety and sanitary standards enforced by local and state health departments. These agencies require an establishment to have proper lighting and adequate heating, cooling, and ventilation systems so employees can work in a comfortable environment.

Large fast food franchises are often decorated pleasantly, incorporating the logo, color schemes, or trademark characters of their parent companies. They supply adequate and comfortable seating facilities, which are maintained according to corporate standards.

Fast food employees may work shifts of five to nine hours and receive appropriate coffee and lunch breaks. These establishments often have private rooms, separated from the main dining rooms, for employees to eat lunches and relax.

Fast food workers may have regular work hours (mornings only, for example) or floating schedules that require them to work a combination of evenings, afternoons, and weekends. Fast food workers may be called in by their managers to work an extra shift or work overtime if another employee is ill or if the restaurant is very busy. Fast food workers should be fairly flexible because their managers have no way to determine in advance how busy or understaffed the restaurant will be.