Day 166 - 28 Sep 95 - Page 36


     
     1   Q.   The sales figures do not take any account of inflation
     2        rate, do they, so -----
     3
     4   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  The inflation rate may be significant with
     5        regard to wages, but it is not necessarily significant with
     6        regard to the price of food, because there may be inflation
     7        but that does not mean to say that a particular company's
     8        products increase in price.  It may be that McDonald's food
     9        prices went up but, for all I know, they did sound business
    10        by keeping their prices at what they were the year before
    11        and despite inflation, I just do not know.
    12
    13   MR. MORRIS:  As a general question then, when do McDonald's food
    14        prices tend to go up?  Do they tend to go up a certain
    15        period every year?
    16        A.  No.
    17
    18   Q.   Just from time to time or -----
    19        A.  I do not remember the last time they have gone up
    20        actually.  We have done meal deals.  Are you talking about
    21        lately or in 1986?
    22
    23   Q.   Anyway, so when you increased your sales figures and your
    24        profits increased for that -----
    25        A.  Hopefully.
    26
    27   Q.   Hopefully, yes.
    28        A.  Depends what the rest of all the other controllables of
    29        what has been spent on them -- equipment gets older.
    30
    31   MS. STEEL:   Can I just make one other point in terms of the
    32        inflation thing, not just inflation, obviously when
    33        comparing the labour costs actual, the actual costs, rather
    34        than the percentage between current year and previous year,
    35        between that time, at that stage the Wages Council was
    36        setting the increases that you would have to implement in
    37        paying your crew, were they not?
    38        A.  Yes, I think it was due in each year.
    39
    40   Q.   Yes, thank you.
    41
    42   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Can I ask a question relating out of that?  I
    43        have pointed out where the amounts spent on crew has
    44        increased between one year and the next, for instance;
    45        might that be accounted for not by increase in number of
    46        hours worked or numbers of people employed but a rise in
    47        wage rates?
    48        A.  Everything, I suppose, contributes, does it not, the
    49        more people you are serving.
    50 
    51   Q.   Can you help me on why it increased when it did.  If the 
    52        answer is now years later "I cannot", then say so. 
    53        A.  I probably cannot really.
    54
    55   Q.   Yes.
    56
    57   MR. MORRIS:  If we just go to the second page of the two page
    58        document, please?
    59        A.  Yes.
    60

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