Peru watchdog says McDonald's franchisee Arcos Dorados violated safety laws (updated)

Arcos Dorados Holdings

26/12/2019 23:21

(Adds details, quote from labor minister)
    By Marco Aquino
    SANTIAGO, Dec 26 (Reuters) - Peru´s labor watchdog has found
McDonald's Corp´s  MCD.N  Latin America franchisee Arcos Dorados
 ARCO.N  guilty of six "very serious" violations of local safety
and health laws following the deaths of two employees in a
restaurant kitchen.
    The Labor Ministry's regulating body (Sunafil) proposed that
the company be fined $254,000 over the deaths.
    Arcos Dorados, which operates all 29 McDonald's restaurants
in Peru, did not respond immediately to a request for comment.
    Alexandra Porras, 18, and Carlos Campo, 19 were electrocuted
earlier this month in Lima, while cleaning the kitchen.
Protesters have taken to the streets carrying posters bearing
the victims' photos and slogans reading: "Justice for Alexa and
Gabriel."
    They were a couple who had been working for the fast-food
chain for several months, according to their families.
    The government has improved business health and safety
regulations in response to the case, Labor Minister Sylvia
Caceres told a news conference Thursday. The current system of
one inspection of companies per year is being replaced by as
many spot inspections as necessary, she said.
    "We have to discourage companies that violate labor
standards," Caceres said, adding that further measures were
under consideration.
    Arcos Dorados, which operates McDonald's restaurants
throughout South America and the Caribbean, said last week that
McDonald's stores in Peru would remain closed until it finished
its own investigation into what happened.

 (Reporting by Marco Aquino
Writing by Aislinn Laing
Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Leslie Adler)
 ((Aislinn.Laing@thomsonreuters.com; +56 223704250;))