McDonald's holds 'National Hiring Day' | Business

WATERVLIET-  Along with Happy Meals and McNuggets, McDonalds was dishing up something else today, 50,000 jobs nationwide.

Today was national hiring day, an opportunity to hire 400 new workers in the Capital Region and get some publicity at the same time.

NewsChannel 13’s John McLoughlin was at the McDonald’s in Watervliet, where he says there was been a steady stream of applicants despite the jobs are all entry level starting at minimum wage.

Critics say it’s a publicity stunt for jobs that would have been filled anyway, but McDonald's says the 50,000 jobs nationwide represent an up tick for the nation's largest fast-food restaurant and a genuine opportunity, with unemployment topping 7%.

"There's an opportunity for you to learn how to manage a 2 to 3 million dollar business” said Doug Arnott, owner of four McDonald’s franchises.

Arnott says one of his managers can make anywhere from $35,000 to $50,000 a year.

Eric Thompson, a manager in Watervliet, started out in one of these entry-level
positions.

"I went out to Chicago to Hamburger University where I graduated and became a store manager and I have been doing that ever since" said Thompson.