I can't really blame HN. The article focuses on minimum wage and largely blames it for automation, and the author is under the impression that it's still possible to go from working the register to CEO.
This is not a good article. It lacks any insight or perspective.
Some of the McDonalds do offer table service. If this CEO is bleeding-heart about young labourers that he employs could simply retrain them for that task and/or convert them to kitchen staff to better handle the foot + drive through traffic.
But at the end, this is merely a fluff piece about how minimum wages are bad.
[0] https://www.forbes.com/sites/edrensi/#1d054af5bf6f [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ed_Rensi
He has at least as relevant a perspective as any commenter here, though of course I believe he has way more relevant experience, having been the CEO of McDonalds. If you think he didn't face anything like these kinds of issues, you're wrong.
Unlikely? Of course, but definitely possible.