Ability award for McDonald’s

McDonald’s DriveThru restaurant in Ennis has been awarded for its commitment to people with disabilities at the O2 Ability Awards.

The awards, now in their fourth year and created by disability organisation Kanchi, recognise organisations and business leaders that think and act differently about people with disabilities; seeing an employee’s strengths and abilities over any disability and recognising the economic potential of making their products and services available to all customers.
McDonald’s Ennis won in the customer service category, acknowledging the efforts proprietor Kieran McDermott has gone on to make the restaurant accessible and comfortable for customers with disabilities.
Mr McDermott said he and all the staff are thrilled with the award.
“We have made a conscious decision to make the restaurant accessible to all. Our disabled parking spaces are right outside the door to the restaurant.
“We have a semi-automated door system, making it easier for wheelchair users to get through the doors.
“We also include a loop system at the tills, which means that anyone with a hearing aid can activate their hearing aid to a setting which blocks out background noise, enabling them to hear the person they are ordering from easier.
“In addition, we have braille signage and portable menus, which helps people with varying degrees of visual impairment,” he explained.
Eleven of the 48 staff in McDonald’s Ennis also have disabilities, including visual and hearing impairments, wheelchair users and staff with dyslexia.
“Our two drive-thru operators, Michael O’Donoghue and Pádraig Brady, are wheelchair users.
“We incorporated a special seat to enable them to comfortably do this job. Clare Supported Employment Services assisted us greatly when we were recruiting staff and have been a wonderful support to us since we opened 14 months ago,” Mr McDermott added.
Clare Supported Employment Service (CSES) team leader Alice O’Carroll said she was delighted to see Kieran and McDonald’s Ennis being recognised for their commitment to people with disabilities.
“This is the second time Kieran McDermott scooped an O2 Ability Award. In 2007, McDonald’s DriveThru Shannon, was commended for its commitment to people with disabilities and named overall winner in the best small business category.
“It comes as no surprise therefore to see his commitment being recognised again at the highest level.”
Clare Supported Employment Service provides free support to Clare businesses to assist them in recruiting candidates who are suited to their business requirements. 
“The candidates we work with are people with different kinds of disabilities. People like Kieran recognise that the person’s ability to do the job is the primary factor and the disability is secondary,” Ms O’Carroll added.
Thirty-eight organisations were shortlisted as Ability Companies for this year’s awards, employing 49,750 people in organisations spanning eight different sectors across 14 counties.
McDonald’s Ennis underwent a four-month, in-depth assessment, which examined all aspects of employment and customer service conducted by disability management consultants and Kanchi’s assessment partner, PricewaterhouseCoopers. 
The company was judged by experts in the fields of business and corporate affairs, disability management, equality management and by people with disabilities themselves, before the final winners were selected.