Day 115 - 06 Apr 95 - Page 40

     
     1        A.  They would come and say somebody has got a head trapped
     2        in the drawer because we have been notified by the arrival
     3        department, when they go into the factories, and we would
     4        say, well, yes -- he has been trying to blame individuals
     5        and I would say:  "Well, who could you blame because we are
     6        a team of men?"  He would say:  "Well, we having complaints
     7        that its head is in there".  We would say: "Well, yes, we
     8        know the problem".  It is a problem because it was
     9        happening regular.  We would say:  "Well, if you can give
    10        us more time to do the work we could carry out the work in
    11        a better order and a safer order if we have more time".
    12        That was to the supervisor we had at nights was called Ray
    13        Styles.  He would say:  "Well", whoever was doing the
    14        shouting and he was shouting at, would say:  "This is the
    15        regulations; you have to work to this time".  We would
    16        say:  "Yes, if we only had five minutes more somebody could
    17        walk down the rows and check the modules that there was no
    18        heads in there".
    19
    20   Q.   Before shutting the drawers?
         A.  Before shutting the drawers.
    22
    23   Q.   They never said to you:  "Oh, we will give you more time"?
    24        A.  We never even got more time to do it, no.
    25
    26   Q.   When you entered the sheds before you started the catching,
    27        what was the reaction of the birds?
    28        A.  They would be flighty and nervous and spookey.
    29
    30   Q.   Did that ever have any effect on any of the birds?
    31        A.  Yes, because once the doors is open the birds were
    32        spooked on more than one occasion and all rushed to either
    33        end of the shed, whichever end you was coming into and down
    34        the sides of the walls, climbing on top of one another
    35        causing smothering.
    36
    37   Q.   Did you ever personally see that, did you?
    38        A.  Yes, I did.
    39
    40   Q.   How many times do you think you saw it while you were
         working there?
    42        A.  Between 10 and a dozen times all the time I was at Sun
    43        Valley; some on big scales where there would be hundreds
    44        dead and some where there would not be so many dead, but
    45        where you are in trying to dig them out, they would have
    46        broken legs or broken wings and suffer in that way.
    47
    48   Q.   You also carried out thinnings.  Can you just explain what
    49        thinnings are?
    50        A.  Thinnings is where they take so many chickens out of a 
    51        shed and so many left in the shed to grow them for extra 
    52        weight.  You take smaller birds out for smaller weights, I 
    53        think it was hens or cockerels, the cockerels grow on to
    54        bigger birds, and you have -- there was only smaller birds.
    55
    56   Q.   Was that usually carried out in the day or in the night?
    57        A.  Mainly thinnings was carried out in the day-time.
    58
    59   Q.   Did that have any effect on how calm the birds were or
    60        their reaction?