May 22, 2014 3 min read

OAK BROOK, Ill. – McDonald’s chief executive officer Don Thompson sought to address a growing chorus of critics on issues including worker pay and marketing to children at its annual meeting Thursday.

As hundreds of protesters chanted for higher wages outside, Thompson told the audience inside the building the company has a heritage of providing job opportunities that lead to “real careers.”

“We believe we pay fair and competitive wages,” Thompson said.

A day earlier, McDonald’s closed one of its buildings in suburban Chicago, where protesters planned to demonstrate over low wages paid to its workers. Organizers then targeted another site on the company’s headquarters, and police said 138 were arrested after they peacefully refused to leave the property.

As in years past, McDonald’s marketing to children also was brought up by speakers affiliated with Corporate Accountability International. Casey Hinds, a mother from Lexington, Ky., said Ronald McDonald was “the Joe Camel of fast food.”

Thompson said McDonald’s wasn’t predatory and Ronald McDonald was about letting kids have fun. He noted his children ate the chain’s food and turned out “quite healthy,” with his daughter even becoming a track star.

“We are people. We do have values at McDonald’s. We are parents,” he said.

Although many fast-food chains engage in similar practices, McDonald’s Corp. is a frequent target for critics because of its high profile. The criticism is becoming a more pressing issue for the world’s biggest hamburger chain at a time when it is fighting to boost weak sales amid heightened competition.

Part of the problem is that people are shifting toward foods they believe are fresher or healthier, which has prompted McDonald’s executives in recent months to underscore the quality of the chain’s ingredients.

Thompson struck on those notes again Thursday, saying the company cracks eggs and uses fresh vegetables.

Still, the issue of worker pay in particular put McDonald’s in an uncomfortable spotlight since late 2012, when protests for a $15-an-hour wage began in New York City.

Demonstrators were out again before the meeting, chanting, “I want, I want, I want my $15.”

Shawn Dalton, who traveled from Pittsburgh, said her daughter is a recent high school graduate who can’t afford to go to college right away, so she’ll likely wind up earning Pennsylvania’s $7.25-an-hour minimum wage.

“That won’t get her an apartment, that won’t buy a bus pass, that won’t buy food,” Dalton said. “She’ll either have to depend on welfare or depend on me.”

Despite the ongoing focus on low-wage workers, shareholders overwhelming voted in favor of McDonald’s executive compensation practices. Last year, Thompson was given a pay package worth $9.5 million.