Day 301 - 15 Nov 96 - Page 08

     
     1        the main points.  And, for example, under this section
     2        where they say McDonald's is an excellent employer, they do
     3        not mention anything about workers having any rights or
     4        about pay levels or whatever, and they come up with what we
     5        say is a non-issue in this section.
     6
     7        Actually, I was going to say this about what we call the
     8        non-issues in the section, which I will come to.  It is in
     9        the meaning at the end.  But it is a non-issue about the
    10        exploitation of black people and women by the company.
    11        All it is saying in the leaflet is that the kind of people
    12        who -- if we win the fact that we say McDonald's is a low
    13        paid employer, then what it means is that people who have
    14        been discriminated against in our society and who in
    15        general are discriminated against - for example, black
    16        people and women are discriminated against in a number of
    17        ways - are further discriminated against in the job market
    18        because of their tendency to fill the jobs that are poorest
    19        quality and lowest paid, because they have few choices.
    20
         That is really just -- well, it could be common knowledge,
    22        but it is not defamatory of McDonald's particularly, or at
    23        all in fact.  McDonald's, in fact, has stated it does
    24        employ a lot of black people and women, which in fact only
    25        proves our point.  So that is a non-issue.
    26
    27        I think the issue of training is a non-issue in terms of
    28        any kind of defamatory meaning in this section, when I come
    29        to it, and I do not think it has actually been considered
    30        to be an issue by the Plaintiffs.  I will have to check
    31        actually what the Statement of Claim is, if I can find it.
    32        Well, they have not made any complaint about training, so
    33        it is not really an issue.
    34
    35        The point is a general criticism of the deskilling of work,
    36        in the fact sheet, comparing that producing meals used to
    37        be a skill, one with individuality and care, and training
    38        was important in that way.  Obviously, you need to be
    39        trained to work at McDonald's because there are so many
    40        bleeping lights and so many observation check lists and
         stuff, but that is not the same as cookery skills.
    42
    43   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  What, if anything, would you be prepared to
    44        accept is a statement there, either expressed or to be
    45        imputed, from what is said in this part of the leaflet?
    46
    47   MR. MORRIS:   Sorry -- you mean where, sorry?
    48
    49   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  In this column and a half or...  Well, it
    50        amounts to one whole column, in fact, half of one column
    51        and half of another column.  What, if anything.... I mean,
    52        there may be nothing which you accept is defamatory, but is
    53        there anything there, either expressly said or to be
    54        inferred from the whole of the relevant text, which you
    55        accept is defamatory of McDonald's?  It may relate to the
    56        whole of the catering industry, but clearly pointed at
    57        McDonald's as well, I would have thought.
    58
    59   MR. MORRIS:   I don't know.
    60