Day 154 - 13 Jul 95 - Page 15

     
     1   Q.   No, but they have ---
     2        A.  -- in the hierarchy.
     3
     4   Q.   -- McDonald's officials present, do they not?
     5        A.  At the meetings?
     6
     7   Q.   Yes.
     8        A.  Yes.
     9
    10   Q.   Have you worked in a business that had trade union
    11        organisations?
    12        A.  I have worked on a farm.  I believe they were
    13        affiliated to a trade union.  I worked -- I think Grand Met
    14        had trade unions when I worked there.
    15
    16   Q.   That is a catering establishment?
    17        A.  It was actually at their Head Office.  It was an office
    18        establishment.
    19
    20   Q.   Did you ever go to the union meetings?
         A.  No.  Sorry, when I was student I was in the students
    22        union.  In fact, I think I was part of the business studies
    23        branch of the students union when I was at college.
    24
    25   Q.   You had your own meetings where management were not
    26        present; people were not present from the college, so you
    27        could just talk ---
    28        A.  Yes.
    29
    30   Q.   -- amongst yourselves?
    31        A.  Yes, we did.
    32
    33   Q.   Do you remember student unions being concerned over the
    34        income that students had or did not have, issues like that?
    35
    36   MR. RAMPTON:  My Lord, we are going miles -----
    37
    38   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  I really do urge you to keep to matters of
    39        substance here.  You have established again what we already
    40        established -- and I know the point -- I think with
         Mr. Stein and someone before him, that there is no facility
    42        at McDonald's for employees to organise themselves and have
    43        a concerted voice on things.  Where we go from there, it
    44        seems to me, is argument which you can present to me in due
    45        course.  Seeking to illustrate it by comparison with the
    46        student unions I do not think advances anything.
    47
    48   MR. MORRIS:  If that is established, then it is also established
    49        that the Plaintiffs keep saying how happy all their workers
    50        are.  So if they could be asked not to carry saying that 
    51        idiotic statement.  It is hearsay, for a start. 
    52 
    53   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  No.  That, again, is all a matter of
    54        argument.  We must keep argument until the end of the case
    55        and concentrate on the evidence for the time being.
    56
    57   MS. STEEL:  Just something on the labour percentage, labour cost
    58        percentage:  do you remember it coming down to 12 per cent
    59        at one stage at Colchester, perhaps in the year of the
    60        Store of the Year?