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As McDonald's seeks to modernize its business, the company is placing a big bet on mobile and other tech platforms. McDonald's has been systematically adding self-service ordering kiosks and table service to stores as it works to "build a better McDonald's." "What we're finding is when people dwell more, they select more," CEO Steve Easterbrook told CNBC on "Squawk on the Street" on Monday. "There's a little bit of an average check boost."

Fast-food restaurant chain Wendy’s will install self-order kiosks at 1,000 stores across the country by the end of 2017 to trim extra labor costs imposed by minimum wage hikes, NJ Advance Media reported. Wendy’s said it already offered to install kiosks in several locations last year and has received positive feedback from customers and franchisees who say they want more of the service.

In light of several cities passing $15 an hour minimum wage laws, McDonald's will install self-serve kiosks at many locations around the country. Wendy's has already gone the automated ordering route and othe fast food outlets are seriously considering it. Supporters of the $15 hourly wage claim that few jobs will be lost as  result of automation. They say the self serve kiosks will make workers more efficient in dealing with the ordering process. That may be true (as explained here). But the near doubling of the minimum wage in most cities will be done incrementally, ostensibly to soften...

Wendy’s fast food restaurant chain says it will begin offering self-serve kiosks at its 6,000-plus locations across America, making them available to costumers by the end of 2016. The fast food giant’s decision to move toward automation comes just as “Fight for $15”–a progressive protest movement, pushing minimum wage hikes–is applying pressure on state governments to raise wages for low-skilled fast food workers. Last August, Wendy’s CFO Todd Penegor told investors that mandated wage hikes will cause his company to pursue other innovative avenues that could lead to fewer jobs for low-skill workers. “We continue to look at initiatives and...

When it comes to jobs growth in the US, all one can say is thank god for waiters and bartenders: after all, a Starbucks barista is precisely what a recently fired oil chemical engineer making half a million dollars really wants to do with their life.  However, the days of easy job gains for the BLS may be coming to an end (even if on a seasonally adjusted, goalseeked basis the trend has a long way to go).According to Brand Eating, fast food king McDonald's has been spotted testing a self-serve McCafe coffee station/kiosk out in downtown Chicago. The...

Panera Bread is going to start using kiosks to input customer orders. The fast-casual chain will start adding about eight kiosks per restaurant, writes Venessa Wong at Bloomberg Businessweek. Customers will also be able to order by phone. As a result, there will be one to two fewer cashiers in restaurants. Panera Bread CEO Ron Shaich said that the new system would help accuracy of orders. Customers would also be able to customize their food. Shaich told Businessweek that it won't be cutting back on workers. The former cashiers will now carry food to customers' tables.

Accused Leader of Counterfeit Motion Picture Network Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Traffic in Counterfeit Goods Guilty Plea Stems From First Joint IPR Investigation by ICE and Chinese Authorities GULFPORT, MS.- Michael A. Holt, Special Agent-in-Charge for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in New Orleans, and Dunn Lampton,United States Attorney for the Southern District of Mississippi, today announced that a man arrested on charges resulting from the first joint Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) investigation by U.S. and Chinese authorities has been convicted in federal court in Mississippi. Earlier today, Randolph Hobson Guthrie III, a U.S. citizen, entered a plea...

<p>At least three men reportedly were taken into federal custody in two Pensacola malls as the FBI and the federal Immigration and Naturalization Service initiated a nationwide sweep Wednesday.</p> <p>Witnesses said plain-clothes agents closed Intrigue jewelry vendors at Cordova and University malls, Wild Things at University and possibly other shops.</p>

FBI and INS Raid Dozens of Jewelry Stores in Search for Terrorist Financiers and Immigration Violators WASHINGTON (AP) - Federal investigators are conducting raids nationwide on jewelry stores owned by Pakistanis and others from the Middle East, hoping to break up fronts for terrorist groups or their financial backers, U.S. officials say. The raids have taken place in several cities over the past two weeks, including Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Atlanta and New York. About 75 jewelry stores have been raided, said a law enforcement official, speaking on condition of anonymity. Tariq Hussain, 27, a recently discharged U.S. Army mechanic whose Intrigue...

A Pakistani man who spent hours photographing the World Trade Center days before it was destroyed was sentenced to six months in jail for immigration violations exactly one year after suspicions over the pictures prompted his arrest. Ashar Butt, 22, acknowledged that he entered the country illegally last year using an altered British passport, but his lawyers said he only came to the United States to start a new life. "He was an innocent individual taking pictures," said his attorney, Anser Ahmad. He added that Butt has already spent a year in jail and is eligible for release within a...

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Customers usually enter Tariq Hussain's jewelry store browsing for diamonds or gold rings. Recently, he was visited by people looking for something much more sinister. Hussain's Intrigue Jewelers kiosk in suburban Pittsburgh was one of several across the nation searched by FBI agents hunting for ties to the al-Qaida terrorist network. ``They took everything, my paperwork, bills, my computer, my checks,'' said Hussain, 27, a recently discharged U.S. Army mechanic. ``I told them, 'I don't have any links to anything like that.''' About 75 stores have been searched by investigators hoping to discover financial backing for...