The CEO of McDonald’s in the UK, Alistair Macrow, revealed in a session with MPs that the fast food chain receives between one and two complaints of sexual harassment per week.

According to the executive, since July he has received more than 400 complaints from employees, a significant increase following a report from public broadcaster the BBC that revealed hundreds of harassment complaints last July.

Of this number, 18 employees were fired, although Macrow admitted that he did not yet know how many complaints were submitted to the police.

A BBC investigation uncovered disturbing cases, including a 17-year-old worker being groped and abused.

The statement pointed to a toxic work culture at McDonald’s, with allegations of sexual harassment, racism and bullying those reported were not taken seriously.

In Tuesday’s session with the Business and Commerce Select Committee, Macrow detailed that since July they received 407 complaints from employees about various issues.

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Protecting our people is the most important thing in our business.”Alistair Macrow

In response to the BBC’s initial report, a special investigative management unit was set up to deal with these complaints.

Of the 157 complaints investigated, 17 related to sexual harassment and resulted in disciplinary action.

“Typically we see between 20 and 25 contacts per week, one or two of which constitute sexual harassment”said the CEO when explaining the frequency of complaints.

During the hearing, Liam Byrne, chairman of the Business and Commerce Committee, questioned Macrow about the company’s priorities between profitability and worker protection.

In this regard, Macrow assured that “protecting our employees is the most important thing in our business.”

More than 200 current and former workers spoke to the BBC about their experiences at McDonald’s, stories described by Macrow “terrifying” and “very difficult to listen to”. Some complaints date back to the 1980s.

McDonald’s is one of the UK’s largest private employers, with more than 170,000 workers and a young workforce, three-quarters of whom are aged between 16 and 25.

The American global chain has 1,450 restaurants in the country, of which 89% are operated by franchises, according to the company.