Major restaurant and retail chains are the biggest beneficiaries of the government’s energy cost subsidy, and yet prices, especially for fast food, have skyrocketed. That is currently a third more expensive than in 2021. By comparison, wages have only increased by 19 percent and inflation by only 21 percent.
From 2021 to April 2024, collective labor agreement wages have been adjusted by 19 percent. This means that they are two percentage points below the general inflation rate of 21 percent. On average, collective labor agreement employees were not compensated for inflation. Fast food prices literally exploded during the observation period: in April 2024, products were about a third (+32 percent) more expensive than in 2021, the union-affiliated Momentum Institute calculated.
“In the same period, inflation was 29 percent for catering services, which also includes quick-service restaurants. This means that inflation for fast food was 3 percentage points higher than for the catering industry as a whole,” explains Leonard Jüngling, inflation expert at the Momentum Institute.
70 percent of the top 50 gastronomy funding goes to McDonalds
This is particularly exciting given the recently published analysis of energy cost subsidy I payouts. According to the Ministry of Finance’s transparency portal, McDonald’s franchisees in particular received at least 3.1 million euros of the approximately 6.9 million euros in aid payments paid out. in the catering sector. This means that 70 percent of the top 50 financing in the field of gastronomy went to the American group McDonalds.
“If companies increase their prices and at the same time receive support money from the state, there is a risk that these companies will collect double. A danger that mainly exists for companies with great market power, such as chains,” concludes Jüngling.
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
