Day 173 - 16 Oct 95 - Page 50


     
     1        Irish Transport and General Workers Union, dated
     2        7th March 1979, referring to their previous letter
     3        requesting a meeting and noting that they have not received
     4        a reply, and then saying: "As a result, we have now been
     5        instructed by our members to serve seven days' strike
     6        notice in pursuance of their claim.  The withdrawal of
     7        labour will take effect as and from finishing time on
     8        Thursday, 15th March.  In the meantime we are available to
     9        meet you for the purpose of resolving the dispute."
    10
    11        It has at the bottom there "copy to Steve Copeland".  So
    12        you sent off a copy to Steve Copeland as soon as you got
    13        that, did you?
    14        A.  Well, I sent a copy of it to Steve Copeland.  I could
    15        not tell you when it was sent to him, whether it was right
    16        away or not.  But I responded to him by letter.
    17
    18   Q.   A week later, on the following page.  You say -- this is a
    19        letter dated 14th March, 1979 -- "I have been unable to
    20        reach you by telephone this week.  Due to a very busy
    21        schedule and business trips out of the country, I have not
    22        been able to get back to you before now."
    23
    24        Were you out of the country all week?
    25
    26   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  When you say you sent a copy to
    27        Steve Copeland, is that your writing, that a copy should go
    28        to him?
    29        A.  No.
    30
    31   Q.   Or was it on the letter when it arrived, that the union had
    32        sent a copy to him?
    33        A.  No.  First of all, my Lord, it is not my writing.
    34
    35   Q.   Do you think it is a direction from your office or from the
    36        union -- because if you see "CC" on a letter, it normally
    37        means that the person who has written it has sent a carbon
    38        copy to the person known.
    39        A.  Yes.
    40
    41   Q.   But are you accepting in this instance that it means that
    42        someone at your company had sent a copy to Mr. Copeland?
    43        A.  I think it was somebody in my company who sent it to
    44        Mr. Copeland, my Lord.
    45
    46   MS. STEEL:  Were you out of the country for the whole of the
    47        week between the 8th and 14th March?
    48        A.  I cannot recall how long I was away for, but I was
    49        certainly away for some days.
    50 
    51   Q.   You could not get your -- you could not dictate a letter to 
    52        your secretary and get her to send a reply off to the 
    53        union?
    54
    55   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Ms. Steel, where are you going?  I am trying
    56        to help you.  I put a suggestion to the witness who
    57        accepted that he was trying to keep his head down, so far
    58        as the unions were concerned.  No matter how many questions
    59        you ask about whether he answered or did not answer
    60        letters, you are not going to do better than that.  You may

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