McDonald's employees share 7 things they learned from working at the fast-food giant

One former crew member who worked at the chain for five years told Business Insider that they learned about "teamwork" through their tenure at the company.

They added that they developed many friendships with their fellow crew members.

"Besides learning about the actual tasks at McDonald's — making burgers, fries, customer service — one learns how to work together with other people," former McDonald's employee and Quora user Chuck Chan wrote. "This is usually not the top-tier of people who 'want' to be working, but usually the people who are working there as a means-to-an-end and this job might have been their last resort."

Working in the fast-food industry can be rough, sometimes. Some customers will give you a hard time.

But one crew member from Minnesota told Business Insider that they learned how to "show the customers no fear."

The employee added that they've become adept at acting as "happy" as possible while working a shift.

McDonald's manager Cody Zeman wrote on Quora that employees should always try as best they can to engage with customers to dispel any possible tension.

"Ask them how their day is going," Zeman wrote. "Always smile. Always walk into work with a clean uniform. Always have an open mind."

"I have learned how to be patient and respect people who work any kind of service job, because kindness and respect goes a long way to making people in those jobs feel good about what they are doing," a former crew member from Virginia told Business Insider.

The former employee added that they always tip 20% nowadays, even when the service is sub-par.

"Sometimes people are having a rough day, and I don't begrudge that anymore," the ex-employee said. "For the people who go to McDonald's: be nice, be patient. A little kindness goes a long way, especially when things have been rough during a shift."

Chan also addressed how working in the fast-food business can increase one's sympathy with restaurant employees.

"The problem with service jobs is that, many times, the customer doesn't consider all the factors in play, and the blame usually goes to the person they interact with," Chan wrote. "Things happen, and usually the restaurant or server will apologize, maybe compensate by giving something free, if they can, and try to maximize your eating experience, or at least try their best. It only takes a little consideration from time to time by the customer."

"Working at McDonald's is a very humbling experience, where one may learn and appreciate about many aspects of life," Chan wrote on Quora. "I've learned to really respect and appreciate the hard work and sweat that it takes to perform those jobs, especially when you need to do it while having a bad day."

McDonald's has been the target of a wave of protests over crew members' earnings.

The organization Fight for 15 has strived to push McDonald's to raise its minimum wage up to $15 an hour. Activists argue that the fast-food giant does not pay its employees a living wage.

In 2016, Richard Eiker, a longtime McDonald's employee and Kansas City resident, told the Guardian why he participated in a number of protests against his employer.

"This movement believes that no one who works full time should rely on food stamps or public assistance — just to pay the basic bills," he said.

"If you want to make a career out of it, you won't be able to make a living from it, most likely," former crew member Michael Lebert wrote on Quora.

A former crew member from Virginia told Business Insider that the low pay bolsters the popular opinion that McDonald's jobs are low status.

"People may disagree that people who work fast food deserve a living wage, but the bottom line is, food service workers are people, not servants," the ex-employee told Business Insider. "The amount of callous, malicious treatment of other human beings people think they can get away with just because they're dealing with someone who works a 's----- job' is unreal."

One McDonald's crew member told Business Insider that they had learned to take an optimistic view of their work.

"McDonald's isn't always a wonderful place to work, but it is a good place to start," a Minnesota crew member told Business Insider.

Are you a McDonald's employee with a story to share? Email acain@businessinsider.com.