Dear Guest,

The numbers do speak for themselves. However, I do know something about business and that is that it costs less to retain employees than to replace employees. The cost of employee replacement varies (as does the training) depending upon their skill and pay level. But even at the lowest paid employee level what you lose when you lose that employee is productivity which equates to money. Then you must spend more money to advertise the vacant position and to process all of the required H.R. paperwork, and even more money to train the new employee. And during the training you are losing a minimum of 25% productivity of the trainer which costs even more money. And while the new employee is being trained and taking up the time of the trainer the remaining employees must pick up the slack which costs more money and could lead to a lower overall morale and even more of a productivity slump.

In essence this is not rally about business but more about moral issues. Yes, this is a free country and as such companies and individuals are allowed to do anything that they want as long as it is “legal.” But legal does not necessarily equate to moral. For example, it is not legal to force someone to have sex with you; that is called rape. However, as a married man or woman it is not illegal to have sex with someone outside of your marriage, but it is immoral (in most civilized societies). It is also not illegal (in most places) to allow your dog to defecate on a public sidewalk but it is immoral to not pick up the waste and properly dispose of it rather than let it pollute the environment or someone’s shoe.

So is it illegal for companies like McDonalds to pay employees a minim wage and only allow them enough paid hours each week that they do not qualify for medical or other benefits in order to keep the bottom line down for the shareholders and executives to reap the benefits of their hard and tireless work? No it is not illegal. But it is up to the moral conscious of these corporate executives as to how they want to treat the very people that make them successful.

As far as the family structure of these employees, let me say that I do believe that people must use their own conscious when it comes to breeding and they should not be popping out children unless they can afford to properly care for their offspring. However that is a whole different issue and education process. And speaking of education, not every person is equipped to go to college or should for that matter. Suppose for a moment that everyone graduated from college with a degree and only wanted to work in the field for which they were educated. Then who, dear Guest, would do your laundry, shine your shoes, change the linens in your hotel room, collect your garbage or do any of the other menial tasks that you do not want to do for yourself. At least these people are willing to work and are not sitting at home collecting federal dollars. And anyone who is willing to work should receive a wage that would allow them to at least provide for their family.

This is not called Fascism and I am certainly not advocating unions (they cripple employees as much as corporations like McDonald’s). What I am speaking about is Corporate Social Responsibility and treating employees fairly for their hard work, not finding ways to use and abuse them for the benefit of bottom line profits that line the pockets of the shareholders and executives. Yes, McDonald’s hires thousands of people to deliver their product but they rely on the rest of the taxpaying public (whether you eat their hamburgers or not), to support their employees through federal welfare programs. It is legal but not very moral.

For the three months that ended on Sept. 30, 2013, net income for McDonald's rose to $1.52 billion, or $1.52 per share. That compared with $1.46 billion, or $1.43 per share, last year. Analysts expected $1.51 per share, according to FactSet.

Revenue rose 2 per cent to $7.32 billion from $7.15 billion last year. Analysts expected $7.33 billion.

McDonald's, based in Oak Brook, Ill., said sales in stores open at least 13 months rose 0.9 per cent, including a 0.7 per cent rise in the U.S. and a 0.2 per cent rise in Europe.

HOW MUCH MONEY DOES A COMPANY NEED TO MAKE? And the even bigger question...who is responsible for McDonald's huge profits? The answer is the employees who work diligently to put out what is referred to as food, in a fast and efficient process that servers the customers well enough to keep them coming back for more.

Last week, McDonald's reported earnings of $1.52 Billion in Net Income in one quarter which adds up to $6.08 Billion in Net Income (net income - also referred to as the bottom line, net profit, or net earnings - is an entity's income minus cost of goods sold, expenses and taxes), per year.

Do you think that they would miss $1 Billion per year if they gave their employees a raise to a reasonable living wage?

Read more: http://www.ctvnews.ca/business/mcdonald-s-posts-5...

My pet peeve is "with no" or "have no" as in:

I'll have a burger with no onions.
On sale today with no money down.
Please hold my money, I have no pockets.

Either you have something or you do not but you cannot have "no" something unless you "...got nobody..." then you are just sad and lonely.

One cannot "send me" or "gift you" or even "give you." I simply do not travel well except via plane, train or automobile. However, they can send "to" me or give "to" me. BEST: "Send a detailed outline to me, and I’ll create a PowerPoint presentation for you."

And another thing, with the advent of the internet it appears that no one is ever standing "in a" line at the grocery or bank, but now are standing "on" line.

My wife had been after me to update my photo after loosing 40 lbs of weight. She shot my new photo with her iPhone 4S in our home with natural light. I posed and she said something that brought out a natural looking smile.

That said, I have been looking for a new position of employment and my wife has been urging me to remove my photo for fear that someone would see how old I am (58), and not consider me for any new position. I feel that a worse faux pas is to not have a profile photo, a potential employer is going to see me during an interview anyway, they might as well know what I look like before I enter the room.

Shane, now you have done it. I swore never to watch Homeward Bound again after the first time I watched it...the ending is just to emotional. And there you go with a video of the most emotional part and throw in a Pug that understands the movie as well. Next you will be hitting me with the 1943 version of Lassie come Home. Have you no mercy?

I cannot believe how many times I use the word "definitely" and spell it wrong every time.

I agree with Terry in that the general public (unlike the CPA certification), does not know the APR designation and therefore means very little in the way of generating business.

As far as professional development, I can say from personal experience that I learned a great deal by joining a 6 month study group and reading the necessary material to take the APR exam. The flaw in the system is that you must sit before a panel of APR's who judge whether or not you are qualified to take that exam. I came out of the broadcast industry; starting as a reporter and then moving into advertising sales, over 20 years combined. When I sat before the review committee, they were half my age, all graduates with degrees in PR, and very protective of their status. It is my opinion that if you are able to pass the exam you should be accredited; you should not have to be judged before hand to see if you are worthy of taking the exam.

Shane, I think that you hit on something very important when you said that you don't consider yourself a Democrat, Independent or Republican.

My mother and father were both republicans and when I became voting age registered as a republican as well. I remained a registered republican for the next 38 years but found myself questioning the politics more and more. This year I changed my registration to Non-Partisan, I just could not align myself to the closed minded thinking and party partisan approach to government that both parties have adopted. There are many issues that I agree with on both sides of the line and many issues that I disagree with in both party platforms. But I don't think that I am alone in my move away from the extreme right and left thinking.

I truly believe that we are on the cusp of significant change in the way people approach politics and business in general. However, I think that the process of change will take perhaps a decade to manifest, perhaps as the younger generations move into a more influential position in our society. But until that happens there will be a lot of turmoil and casualties.

PR Pat, you bring up two very valid thoughts. "Perhaps I'd better think it through again..."