Day 302 - 18 Nov 96 - Page 21
1 said that when he started at McDonald's in 1963, he started
2 on one dollar an hour, it was the minimum wage, he said.
3 That was day 4, page 35, line 26. So here we can see a
4 pattern of minimum wage employment going back to the early
5 1960s.
6
7 And then on page 47, line 52, he said he had read Behind
8 the Arches. "I think it treats us rather favourably", he
9 said. So that should be borne in mind, that this is not a
10 critical or hostile book but actually one backed by the
11 corporation which is favourable to them. Therefore, things
12 in it that are to our advantage have added weight, we would
13 say, because of that.
14
15 Then he did say on page 54, line 43, that performance
16 reviews take place shorter than at six month intervals. If
17 the performance of the employee was outstanding, the
18 increase could be 25 cents an hour, or it could be 20
19 cents. If the level of the performance was just
20 satisfactory, the amount would be something less than
21 that. The point I bring that up is it looks like there is
22 no basic difference between the US and the UK as regards
23 performance reviews, so we can transfer what we have heard
24 in this country largely to the States.
25
26 On page 71, line 36.... I want to check this, actually.
27 This is an important point. I put to him: "Is it true
28 that one of the reasons there is no trade union at
29 McDonald's is because McDonald's took steps to try to
30 prevent trade union organisation, say, around that time
31 when it was actually a problem". Answer: "That is true".
32
33 Now, the important thing - I actually mentioned this
34 earlier on - but the important thing is that he is agreeing
35 that it is true that one of the reasons there is currently
36 no trade union at McDonald's is because they took steps at
37 the time when it was a problem, and therefore they did set
38 up a pattern which is affecting employees and the
39 corporation today by preventing unionisation when it was a
40 problem, and, basically, once you have established that you
41 are an anti-union employer, as McDonald's have done, and
42 everybody knows it, the job of course is made much more
43 easy for the company because you have got an impossible
44 hurdle to overcome if you are an employee. Not only do you
45 not have union support and backing, but also you know that
46 you are facing a hostile company. And McDonald's know
47 that.
48
49 And, in fact, while I am on that subject, that is one of
50 the reasons we believe they put rumours around about stores
51 being closed down, I mean, who tried to unionise. The
52 message is it is futile to even think about it. That is
53 the message. Even if you do not deem that rumour to be a
54 deliberate rumour, although it was said, I think it had
55 been heard on management courses, I think somebody said,
56 the point is the rumour was not countered and it would have
57 the effect, as McDonald's would know, on the employees of
58 demoralising them if they were going to be interested in
59 the unionisation. So the effect of it is the same whether
60 or not the rumour is true or whether or not McDonald's
