McDonald’s Restaurants of California, Inc. California Layoffs 2026: What Employees Should Know

What the filing says

These are the details as McDonald’s Restaurants of California, Inc.reported them to the state. The EDD publishes every notice, and these figures come from the state's report as retrieved on Aug 13, 2026.

How much notice the law requires

California's WARN Act requires 60 days of advance written notice before a covered mass layoff, and its only statutory exception is a physical calamity or an act of war — far narrower than federal law's three. Who is covered and how the thresholds are counted is in our California WARN Act guide.

McDonald’s Restaurants of California severance: what to check before you sign

A severance offer is not the notice pay the WARN Act describes. Severance you were already promised — in a contract, a handbook, or a union agreement — cannot be used to satisfy that obligation, though Labor Code section 1402 does let an employer reduce a back-pay award by voluntary payments it was never required to make. A release may also give up more than you expect. Justin reviews severance agreements before workers sign. What to check before you decide is in our full guide to the California WARN Act.

Two things worth doing this week either way. File for unemployment now — WARN money does not reduce it, and the filings here run through Jan 26, 2026, so you do not have to wait for your last day. And keep every document, including the notice itself and anything showing when it arrived.

Questions people are asking

Where a layoff can raise a legal question

A layoff is lawful on its own, and nothing below is a statement about McDonald’s Restaurants of California. These are the places California law can still come into play, depending on the facts of your own situation.

• The severance you were asked to signA release can give up claims you did not know you had, and the terms are sometimes negotiable.
• How you were selectedA reduction in force still cannot be used to cut someone for a protected reason such as age, disability, pregnancy, or a complaint they made.
• Your final paycheckCalifornia sets when final wages are due at termination, and unpaid time or accrued vacation can carry penalties on top of the wages.

General information about California law, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship.

What the numbers show

• The filings name 2 locations: Los Angeles and Monterey Park.
• They cover 2 separate addresses rather than a single site, so co-workers at different locations may have received different dates.
• Every notice is filed as a closure rather than a partial reduction, meaning the sites themselves are shutting down.
• At least one notice is marked temporary rather than permanent. A temporary designation is what the employer reported; it is not a promise of recall.
• The jobs do not all end on the same day. The filings list 2 separate last days of work, running from September 8, 2025 to January 26, 2026.
• The shortest gap between notice and last day here is 62 days, close to the statewide median of 61 days across every notice on file.
• By headcount it sits in the top 20% of the 599 employer layoffs tracked here.
• The 167 workers leaving McDonald’s Restaurants of California, Inc. re-enter a job market where Los Angeles County unemployment stood at 5.3% in June 2026, above the 5.2% statewide rate (Bureau of Labor Statistics, not seasonally adjusted).
• The filings came in waves: one notice in July 2025 covering 87 jobs, then one notice in November 2025 covering 80 jobs.

These are counts and comparisons drawn from the published filings, not findings about McDonald’s Restaurants of California.

Free job-search help near the affected sites

America's Job Center of California is the state's no-cost network for laid-off workers: help filing and keeping unemployment benefits, federally funded retraining, and résumé and interview coaching. Your WARN notice may name one; these are the closest to the sites in these filings.

• The Hollywood WorkSource Center (opens in a new tab)

  4311 Melrose Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90029 · 323-454-6100

  Comprehensive center (full services on site) · about 1.1 miles from the Los Angeles site

• East LA/West San Gabriel Valley AJCC (opens in a new tab)

  5301 Whittier Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90022 · 323-877-7122

  Comprehensive center (full services on site) · about 1.5 miles from the Monterey Park site

Locations and hours change — confirm before visiting, or find another center with the EDD's center locator (opens in a new tab). Directory: U.S. Department of Labor, Jul 31, 2026; distances are straight-line from the address in the filing.

Other layoffs filed in Los Angeles County around the same time

158 employers have WARN notices on file in Los Angeles County, covering 17,863 workers. These filed within about a quarter of this one.

• Republic National Distributing Company1,756 workers
• Oracle America, Inc.1,250 workers
• University of Southern California957 workers
• Adventist Health614 workers
• Children's Hospital Los Angeles439 workers
• Blue Shield of California433 workers

Listed because they appear in the same county in the same public data. No connection between these employers is implied.

California wage claims filed against McDonald’s Restaurants of California

California employers face claims under the Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA), which lets an employee sue for civil penalties over Labor Code violations on behalf of the state. The state publishes every filing. 5 PAGA cases naming this employer are on that record, including the settlements below.

These are outcomes in other people’s cases, obtained by other lawyers, taken from the state’s public filing record. They are not results of this firm, and past results do not guarantee a similar outcome. What any individual recovers depends on their own hours, pay records, and dates.

• Proposed settlement · 2024

  $6,500,000

  Former and current non-exempt employees of McDonald's in California allege they were not paid for all hours worked, were denied meal and rest breaks, not reimbursed for business expenses, and given inaccurate wage statements. The parties reached a proposed settlement, which is now before the court for preliminary approval. The settlement, if approved, would provide a total of $6,500,000 to resolve these claims.

  Covered all individuals employed by Defendant as non-exempt employees in California at any time during the Class Period, i.e. from June 2, 2020 to the preliminary approval date, or such earlier date as Defendant may elect under the terms of the Settlement. The settlement resolved class claims as well as PAGA penalties.

  Employees covered

  19,470

  Attorneys' fees

  $2,166,666

  To the state (LWDA)

  $150,000

  Superior Court of the State of California for the County of San Bernardino · CIVSB2305280 · McDonald’s Restaurants of California denied liability; a settlement is not an admission.

• Court-approved settlement · 2022

  $2,000,000

  Former employees of McDonald's Restaurants of California alleged the company violated California law by the way it reported overtime and other compensation on wage statements. A $2 million settlement was reached and approved by the court, resolving class action and PAGA claims. The settlement covers California non-exempt employees who received wage statements with certain premium overtime or MQI True Up wages.

  Covered all California non-exempt employees who received wage statements that included daily, weekly, or seventh day premium overtime and/or MQI True Up wages at any time from April 6, 2019 through the Preliminary Approval Date. The settlement resolved class claims as well as PAGA penalties.

  Employees covered

  5,437

  Attorneys' fees

  $560,000

  To the state (LWDA)

  $75,000

  UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA · 1:20-at-00609 · McDonald’s Restaurants of California denied liability; a settlement is not an admission.

• Court-approved settlement · 2017

  $235,000

  Employees at McDonald's restaurants owned by a specific franchisee alleged they were not paid properly for overtime and meal and rest breaks. The court approved a settlement that requires the franchisee to implement injunctive relief, including paying overtime premiums and ensuring full meal periods and rest breaks. The settlement also includes a gross fund of $235,000 for payments to affected employees and service awards to the named plaintiffs.

  Covered Settlement Class Members. The settlement resolved class claims as well as PAGA penalties.

  United States District Court, Northern District of California · A settlement is not an admission of liability.

A PAGA case is not a class action, and there is nothing to opt out of. A PAGA settlement resolves civil penalties owed to the state — most of which the state keeps — and it does not necessarily resolve your own unpaid wages, missed break premiums, or final-paycheck penalties. If you worked here and were not paid correctly, that is a separate question worth asking about. How California wage claims work.