‘I should not feel scared’: McDonald’s employee draws attention to violence

Kayla Carswell says working nights at McDonald’s can be downright scary at times.

The 21-year-old has worked at the Eighth Street location in front of the Centre Mall for three months. She took to Facebook this month to draw attention to what she calls a growing problem of drunken and aggressive behaviour involving teenagers.

“People have been terrorizing guests and us. Terrorizing each other. Starting fights, honking at each other and it gets to be really terrifying,” she said.

“It makes me angry because it’s my work. I don’t want something bad to happen to me or other people.”

Violent altercation captured on video

The unruly activity turned violent this summer.

One such incident was a bloody fistfight outside the restaurant on July 23, which prompted Carswell to speak out.

“I have never felt more uneasy at a place of employment,” she wrote.

“My location has been completely overrun by teenagers. I get harassed whenever I’m there past 8 p.m. working, and it’s uncalled for.”

Police were called to the location around 9:30 p.m. about a large group of people fighting in the parking lot. When officers arrived, they found some people suffering from the effects of pepper spray, and they noted vehicle damage.

A few seconds of the altercation were captured on a cell phone video.

Fifteen-year-old Jordan was having a smoothie with friends inside the restaurant when she said the incident escalated quickly into violence.

“It got heated with someone spraying bear spray or something, then people got tackled,” she said.

She said one of the victims appeared to have a broken nose when he came inside to use the washroom.

“There was blood everywhere, on the floor, on the tables,” she said.

Jordan said the crowd dispersed after an airsoft gun was fired.

The incident left her shaken and thinking twice about returning.

“It was really scary afterwards. The cop told us that it could have been a real gun; in most cases it is a real gun,” she said.

“So then replaying that, thinking that was a real gun, it just got real scary.”

Police have issued a warrant for the arrest of a 17-year-old male who is charged with assault and carrying a concealed weapon.

Parking lot a hot spot, according to police

Tanya Gresty is the sergeant in charge of the city’s east division district.

Gresty said the 3500 block of Eighth Street receives the most calls for service on the east side, and has held the title for some time.

From July 8 to Aug. 5 police were called to that block 44 times. Gresty said the majority of calls are for general mischief, property damage, Traffic Safety Act infractions and public urination.

She adds most of the issues occur during the evening and on weekends.

“What I’m noticing in reading through some of the reports is that alcohol is often the contributing factor to the most extreme events going on,” she said.

“I’m hearing that community members are feeling unsafe and that’s a huge problem.”

To crack down on the problem, Gresty said officers are increasing their presence in the area and working with businesses.

She said police are currently working on a pilot project that would allow officers to issue summary offence tickets under the Trespass to Property Act.

Under the current law, businesses must file a complaint before police can issue tickets to a person who was asked to leave a premise.

“That’s one of the tools that is most useful for police in being able to deal with problem people in the area,”she said.

McDonald’s says safety a priority

McDonald’s Restaurants of Canada said it was unable to comment on matters under police investigation, but said its sole focus is on safety.

“The safety and security of our guests remains a top priority for McDonald’s Canada,” the company said in a statement.

Carswell believes management should be doing more after she said a fellow employee was assaulted in the parking lot on Aug. 8.

650 CKOM was unable to verify the assault involving an employee, but police confirm they responded to an incident on the same evening where a 17-year-old boy had been punched in the head “six to seven times” before being thrown to the ground.

A 20-year-old man was arrested and charged with common assault.

The latest spate of violence has Carswell considering quitting.

“I feel like I need a manager to either walk me to my car or walk me to the bus. Do I want to put myself in danger every day to just make $11 an hour?” she said.

Carswell wants to get the message out that this behaviour should not be accepted anymore.

The Centre Mall could not be reached for comment.