Day 138 - 20 Jun 95 - Page 18
1 I think you have answered it. Does this mean that there is
2 no objection to employees soliciting other employees to
3 join a union during their breaks or in the crew room or
4 whatever it is?
5 A. That is correct. In their crew room they would have an
6 absolute right to do that. We do not want, if someone is
7 working at the grill and the other person is off duty, that
8 would not be permitted, but if both of them are in the crew
9 room during their break they have an absolute right to do
10 that.
11
12 Q. It says in the last paragraph: "Employees who have
13 finished work are requested to leave the premises as soon
14 as possible. Off duty employees are not permitted to
15 distribute literature to solicit or otherwise interfere
16 with or disturb working employees".
17
18 MR. MORRIS: The previous question was a completely leading
19 question, Mr. Rampton.
20
21 MR. RAMPTON: I know it was; he had already answered.
22
23 MR. MORRIS: No, I think you put the words into his mouth,
24 Mr. Rampton.
25
26 MR. RAMPTON: I will not trouble, Mr. Stein.
27
28 MR. JUSTICE BELL: What are you objecting to, Mr. Morris?
29
30 MR. MORRIS: You said I should bring up Mr. Rampton directly.
31
32 MR. JUSTICE BELL: What are you objecting to?
33
34 MR. MORRIS: I am objecting to putting words into the witness's
35 mouth.
36
37 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Let us look at the question. Which is the
38 question you are objecting to?
39
40 MR. MORRIS: It was the long speech by Mr. Rampton.
41
42 MR. RAMPTON: Let me ask it again.
43
44 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Just pause for a moment. It was a leading
45 question but you really have to ask, have you not, whether
46 it does any harm? I would have thought in that instance
47 that in that instance Mr. Rampton is putting no more than
48 the obvious meaning of the words of what he read out from
49 "if such solicitation takes place" etc. because the normal
50 inference would be that if it does not take place in an
51 area of the restaurant frequented by customers, and if it
52 does not otherwise interfere with work being performed by
53 other employees, then the soliciting set out in the first
54 part of that paragraph which is, in fact, one sentence is
55 all right; it could not be any other meaning.
56
57 MR. MORRIS: It says "during such employees' working time",
58 which I would have thought to mean from the moment they
59 walk into the store to the moment they leave the store,
60 having completed their work.
