As thousands of people, including hundreds of McDonald’s workers, staged a protest near McDonald’s corporate headquarters in the Chicago suburbs, the halls of those offices were apparently quite vacant, as the company told many of its 3,200 HQ employees to stay home today in order to avoid the scene.

A rep for the fast food colossus tells Bloomberg that “We’ve adjusted work schedules for our employees and access to our facilities to assist the Oak Brook Police Department and address the protests and the related traffic congestion.”

The organizers of the event are seeking higher pay for fast food workers. After learning that the corporate HQ had effectively been shuttered for the day, the protest shifted toward the nearby McDonald’s campus where you’ll find Hamburger University.

“McDonald’s has cleared and closed its corporate headquarters,” said the communications director for the Workers Organizing Committee of Chicago tells Bloomberg. “The closing reflects McDonald’s refusal to address the growing concerns of workers and failure to take action to raise wages.”

Another rep for McDonald’s explained to the Chicago Tribune that corporate employees were working remotely today.

“The decision was made because that building is in a high traffic area, off a major highway and is next to a busy shopping mall and the pedestrian and vehicle traffic and congestion would be unbearable,” said the rep. “They are working from home and the rest of us are working as usual.”

That same rep told HuffPo that some of the buildings on the company’s main campus remained open for business today.

HuffPo also reports that police arrested a rabbi and others who disregarded a police order to disperse.

Want more consumer news? Visit our parent organization, Consumer Reports, for the latest on scams, recalls, and other consumer issues.