Staffing

McDonald's extends youth job-prep program

Photo: File

September 29, 2020

McDonald's Youth Opportunity initiative has extended the Passport to Success Explorer digital curriculum to reach up to 100,000 young people from various non-profits, community organizations and post-secondary institutions that support diverse communities during the COVID-19 pandemic, the company said in a news release.

The You Opportunity initiative seeks to break down employment barriers for 2 million young people by 2025. In partnership with the International Youth Foundation the PTS Explorer digital curriculum provides youth the opportunity to learn valuable life skills, such as self-awareness and management, communication skills, healthy relationship building, and conflict management.

"As COVID-19 forced many young people out of the classroom, we knew we had great responsibility to do the right thing to ensure our most vulnerable youth were able to access education and professional development trainings," Monica Tijerina, McDonald's director, global people strategy, said in the release. "We worked with IYF to enhance the PTS in-person lessons and turned them into a game-based digital curriculum, ultimately opening it up to additional youth and partners across the globe".

IYF President and CEO Susan Reichle said that even in non-pandemic times, young people are three times more likely than adults to be unemployed, but during the pandemic this age group has been hit harder.

"This is an economic and social challenge that cannot be overcome alone," Reichle said in the release. "Now more than ever, non-profits, corporations, local organizations, and young people themselves need to come together to develop solutions.

In addition to PTS Explorer, McDonald's Youth Opportunity program is providing young people access to McDonald's employment opportunities through customizable online applications and virtual career development opportunities, which include resume/job application workshops and career panels in Spanish and English with McDonald's corporate employees.

IYF partners with organizations who serve the needs of youth who face multiple barriers to employment and education, including organizations like the National Urban League, Boys & Girls Clubs of Puerto Rico, Jobs for America's Graduates in the U.S. and Arcos Dorados' partner Aldeas Infantiles SOS Mexico.

More than 430,000 Opportunity Youth have been hired as McDonald's crew members since the program launched and more than 420,000 young people have been given access to training in markets across the globe including the U.S., Latin America, Italy, Hong Kong, Korea, Japan and elsewhere, the brand said.

McDonald's, based in Chicago, has more than 38,000 locations in nearly 120 countries.