Day 163 - 25 Sep 95 - Page 25
1 given to McDonald's, whether or not McDonald's themselves
2 bothered to monitor their own practices effectively or not.
3
4 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Yes. You are going to deal with (3) then?
5
6 MR. MORRIS: Yes. If we go to page 42 of the second document,
7 and it starts off: "There is a five month old State crack
8 down on child labour laws", etc. The second line, the
9 second paragraph: "Late last year the Illinois Department
10 of Labour began slapping companies that break child labour
11 laws with fines; a dramatic departure from the State's
12 previous policy of educating violators about the laws".
13 This is reported in Crane's Chicago business. "The
14 Department reversed direction after it was sharply
15 criticised by the State Auditor General and a civic group
16 last year after the Department uncovered more than 10,000
17 child labour law violations over the six years ended mid
18 year 1989 without levying a single fine." This was
19 reported in April 15th 1991. All of that is incorporated
20 into the particulars of that pleading, that amendment.
21
22 Then it says: "Since then the Department of Labour", this
23 is Illinois, "has imposed $150,000 in fines on some 200
24 companies." Then two paragraphs below that it says:
25 "Whilst civic groups and organised labour praised the new
26 policy, they say the Department's limited troup of 15
27 inspectors can manage little more than token enforcement".
28 Then it says: "Besides child labour laws the inspectors
29 are responsible for uncovering minimum wage, over-time and
30 six day work week violations at Illinois's 300,000
31 businesses".
32
33 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Where is the reference to McDonald's?
34
35 MR. MORRIS: Yes, over the page, the very last line of the
36 middle section, the paragraph starting: "Late last year",
37 this is also from Crane's Chicago Business, April 15th
38 1991, "The State DOL", Department of Labour, "began
39 inspecting businesses across the State and imposing fines
40 on those in violation. The majority of the penalties have
41 been levied against fast-food restaurants such as
42 franchisees with Burger King and McDonald's Corporation."
43 I think that basically deals with that particular one.
44
45 I am trying to skate through as quickly as I can so I hope
46 I do not miss any points out. If there is anything that
47 does not seem to have been justified, if I could be brought
48 up about that?
49
50 The point (4), if we can go to page 46 of the document,
51 this is a report from UPI 1990, June 9th, 1990, United
52 Press International. Maybe if you could just read that
53 through rather than me reading it out?
54
55 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Yes.
56
57 MR. MORRIS: I think, if you have read down to two-thirds of the
58 way down page 47 ---
59
60 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Yes.
