Forbidden Office Romances

Steve Easterbrook, the former CEO of McDonald's, was fired in 2019 for having a consensual relationship with an employee. That violation of company policy cost him his job and a $42 million severance package—but it was what the board found next that turned a termination into a $105 million clawback, one of the largest in corporate history.

The episode walks through four other workplace romance scandals that escalated into fraud, theft, and privacy violations. Each story follows a similar pattern: a manager in a position of power lets a romantic relationship blur the lines between personal desire and professional responsibility, and the result is criminal charges, civil lawsuits, and careers destroyed.

The McDonald's Case: From CEO to SEC Defendant

Easterbrook's story is the most prominent. He joined McDonald's in the 1990s, rose through operations in the UK and Northern Europe, and became global chief brand officer in 2013. By March 2015, he was president and CEO, credited with launching all-day breakfast, pushing digital ordering, and moving headquarters to Chicago. The board discovered his relationship with an employee in November 2019 and terminated him with a severance package worth roughly $42 million.