Day 301 - 15 Nov 96 - Page 31
1 that it is a system that confuses everybody that counts, in
2 terms of being able to have any independent understanding
3 or criticism of McDonald's payment system because all the
4 laws are geared to weekly considerations and at a stroke
5 McDonald's can conceal and confuse even their own staff by
6 having a fortnightly payment system. Understanding your
7 pay or not understanding it is part of having poor
8 conditions.
9
10 I did not realise it was gone one o'clock.
11
12 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Yes. Two o'clock.
13
14 (Luncheon Adjournment)
15
16 MR. MORRIS: I was going to ask, actually, that if it is
17 possible to finish a little bit earlier today, about
18 quarter to four?
19
20 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Yes.
21
22 MR. MORRIS: Because my son has got a birthday party.
23
24 MR JUSTICE BELL: You need not give me a reason, it is perfectly
25 all right.
26
27 MR. MORRIS: Right. On day 119, page 32, I think it was over a
28 number of pages, we showed Mr. Nicholson the Orpington time
29 sheet that contained a number of illegalities, which he
30 admitted it did so. That was just the only time sheet that
31 we had ever seen and it contains a number of illegalities.
32 That was until, of course, we got the Bath and Heathrow
33 documents. McDonald's have admitted being convicted of
34 various offences, including illegal employment practices; a
35 total of 73 offences at Guildford and Luton in 1982 and
36 Slough in 1984. There was also the employee injury in Bury
37 in 1991. I am not saying I am dealing with it in the most
38 comprehensive manner, I am just skating through the core
39 evidence. Of course, we also heard how a manager-----
40
41 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Guildford, Luton, and what was the third?
42
43 MR. MORRIS: Slough, 1984 and Bury, 1981, employee injury. And
44 we had the manageress who was jailed for six months for
45 inducing a crew member to phone through a hoax bomb threat
46 to nearby Burger King in Newcastle in order to boost the
47 sales. I have a note here that says, 'JBs ruling'.
48 I think you made a ruling that as far as you were concerned
49 -- my vague recollection was that as far as you were
50 concerned that summed it up. And there was not
51 further-----
52
53 MR. JUSTICE BELL: I think what I indicated was that I did not
54 think what happened in Newcastle actually reflected on
55 McDonald's as a company.
56
57 MR. MORRIS: We would say it does, because clearly the pressure
58 to boost sales, you know, needs to manifest itself in a
59 number of ways. This particular way was obviously
60 illegal. We have heard of other illegalities, which we say
