Day 118 - 01 May 95 - Page 32


     
     1        people under the age of 18?
     2        A.  We are a first-time employer, yes.
     3
     4   Q.   It is a positive decision?
     5        A.  Yes, we are a first-time employer.
     6
     7   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  But you are being asked whether you go
     8        looking for under 18s or they are just ---
     9        A.  Oh, no.
    10
    11   Q.   -- the people who tend to answer the ads?
    12        A.  No, they are the ones -- we do not go looking for any
    13        particular age group.
    14
    15   MR. MORRIS:  So it is completely coincidental that a third, or
    16        something between something like a third, of all your staff
    17        in the Southeast region, for example, just happen to be in
    18        the first two first years out of the 50 years available
    19        working age groups?
    20        A.  I am sorry; you have lost me on that question.
    21
    22   Q.   What I am saying is that you can employ anyone between the
    23        age of 16 and 65 ------
    24
    25   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Why do you not ask him why he thinks that a
    26        significant proportion of McDonald's employees are under
    27        18?
    28
    29   MR. MORRIS:  Yes.
    30
    31   THE WITNESS:  Because it is the kind of environment that young
    32        people like working in.  It is as simple as that.
    33
    34   MR. MORRIS:  Is it not because the wages are so low nobody with
    35        any experience would want to work there, really?
    36        A.  No.
    37
    38   Q.   You do recruit amongst under 18s, do you not?
    39        A.  Yes.  I have just said, we recruit under 18.  We
    40        recruit over 18s.  We recruit all ages.
    41
    42   Q.   But you do not take positive steps to reach under 18s?
    43        A.  No, no.  I think at the present moment it has gone the
    44        other way.  We are making positive attempts to get old aged
    45        pensioners to come in and work for us, to fill in their
    46        day.  We have a lot of old people work for us in our
    47        crews.  We do not direct our attention to under 18s; we
    48        attract a lot of under 18s.
    49
    50   Q.   You attend school careers fairs with recruitment stalls, do 
    51        you not? 
    52        A.  We certainly used to; I do not know what they do now. 
    53        We did, certainly, but we attended the careers fairs for
    54        salaried staff, not hourly paid workers.
    55
    56   Q.   It is just because I saw that on the document, so we will
    57        leave that file now.
    58
    59   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  I want to ask a question:  The system that
    60        you apply of having a minimum rate which is, let us say,

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