Day 130 - 26 May 95 - Page 61


     
     1        in deciding what is correct for that particular restaurant.
     2
     3   Q.   So you are quite happy that if managers tell you everything
     4        in the garden is rosy, then, as far as under-staffing is
     5        concerned, you are willing to accept that?
     6        A.  Well, I am not saying they are telling me everything is
     7        rosey.  What I am saying is they are the ones on spot who
     8        are empowered to make sure they have the right amount of
     9        people on site.
    10
    11   Q.   You are the one who is preparing national risk management
    12        practices and education for the whole Company.  If all
    13        managers tell you they do travel paths and all managers
    14        tell you they do safety, they are very concerned about
    15        safety, you are not going to take that as read, are you?
    16        You are going to say: "Well, is it happening in practice?
    17        Are you doing this?  Are you doing that?" but you are not
    18        prepared to do that about under-staffing?
    19        A.  I am out in restaurants once or twice a week.  I cannot
    20        think of any examples, certainly recently, where I have
    21        been in a restaurant where they appeared to be under
    22        pressure because, perhaps, there are more customers than
    23        expected even, never mind under-scheduling which you seem
    24        to be inferring there.  If I thought it were a problem,
    25        yes, of course, I would raise it, but I do not.
    26
    27   Q.   Are you concerned as the person responsible for risk
    28        management, forward planning and education, about the
    29        targeted labour cost percentages set for each store to keep
    30        labour costs down below a certain percentage?  Would that
    31        concern you in terms of potential safety implications?
    32        A.  It depends how they were worked out.  I cannot
    33        tell ----
    34
    35   Q.   Do you know about it?
    36        A.  I cannot tell with a particular store.  It may be
    37        something that my regional people would get involved in,
    38        but it is something really for the local area management
    39        with the Restaurant Managers to decide what is the proper
    40        amount of staff to run that restaurant.  To be honest,
    41        look, there is no advantage to us in under-staffing because
    42        all it means is that we are basically turning customers
    43        away.  One of the keys of managing correctly, is to make
    44        sure you have adequate staff there for the number of
    45        customers.
    46
    47   Q.   Yes, and it is one of your jobs, is it not, to educate the
    48        Company about potential risks and practices that might lead
    49        to risks to do with safety, and have you looked into how
    50        the targeted labour guidelines, labour cost guidelines, are 
    51        working? 
    52 
    53   MR. RAMPTON:  My Lord, I must intervene.  Mr. Morris is asking
    54        Mrs. Barnes when she stopped beating her husband.  There
    55        has been no evidence in court that there is any such a
    56        general target. The evidence has been consistent that there
    57        is not. I know of no evidence that there is.
    58
    59   MR. JUSTICE BELL:   It is still a matter which is up for debate;
    60        I will have to see what all the evidence is.

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