McDonald’s plans to lay off workers and cut costs by $500 million by the end of 2019. In an email to employees, McDonald’s U.S. President Chris Kempczinski said the company would be restructuring regional offices as it trims its corporate structure, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal.
“I recognize that change is difficult, and that eliminating layers within our organization means some employees will ultimately exit our system,” Kempczinski said in the email.
The company said it would give more details in a town hall meeting June 12. It did not say how many jobs would be cut.
In a video message, Kempczinski said the company would reduce the number of layers between field consultants and its CEO, Steve Easterbrook, to six from eight.
“We are putting into place a new U.S. field structure that will better support our franchisees and will ensure McDonald’s continues on a path to being more dynamic, nimble, and competitive,” McDonald’s spokeswoman Terri Hickey told Reuters.
Earlier this week, the company said it would expand its use of self-serve kiosks, adding them to 1,000 restaurants each quarter for the next two years.
“What we’re finding is when people dwell more, they select more,” Easterbrook said Monday. “So there’s a little bit of an average check boost.”
The company also opened a new $250 million headquarters building in the Fulton Market district of Chicago on Monday.
The new Chicago facility will be home to about 2,000 workers and a Hamburger University training facility.
The company has been based in Oak Brook, Ill., since the 1970s.