McDonald's to shut every UK store on September 19, here's why

As reported by Express, McDonald’s has announced today it will be closing all of its branches across the UK on 19 September in honour of Queen Elizabeth II, who passed away on 8 September 2022. The Queen's funeral is to be held on 19 September.

McDonald’s made its announcement via its social media page. In their post, they wrote that on 19 September, all the McDonald's branches in the UK will remain closed from midnight until 5 PM. There will also be no deliveries during this time period.

McDonald’s announcement

McDonald's post stated that closing the restaurants would allow everyone at McDonald's to also pay their respects to the Queen.

On 19 September, after 5 PM, their operating hours and services may vary, so they have requested customers to please check their app before travelling to any McDonald’s restaurants.

As per Express, the company has also assured public that all their staff would be paid despite the closure, stating,

All company owned restaurant employees will be paid for their scheduled hours.

Period of national mourning in the United Kingdom

With the passing of the monarch, according to The Guardian,the UK has entered a period of national mourning. This sombre period will last for 10 days until the day after the Queen's funeral.

Across the UK, this period has been marked by cancellation of many events. The government has further announced that the day of the Queen's funeral will be considered a bank holiday.

Sources:

- Express: 'McDonald's to close all branches on Monday for Queen's funeral'

- The Guardian: 'Tell us how you feel about the period of national mourning for the Queen'

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