Citizensvoice.com - McDonald's is fighting back.

The class-action lawsuit against a local McDonald's franchise for paying employees with debit cards has no merit because the pay method is legal and workers agreed to it when they were hired, attorneys for the company argue.

They also claim the lead plaintiff has no standing to bring the suit because she never activated the card or incurred any fees.

Attorneys for Albert and Carol Mueller, whose company owns 16 regional McDonald's restaurants, contend the payroll cards "are the functional equivalent of cash or checks" and that employees "consented to the conduct about which they complain."

The company recently filed its response to a class-action suit initiated by attorneys for Natalie Gunshannon, a 27-year-old from Dallas Township who briefly worked at the Shavertown McDonald's early this year. Her suit challenged the company's controversial practice of only paying employees with debit cards, which she said illegally burdened employees with fees for transactions. Continue