Day 174 - 17 Oct 95 - Page 30
1 others.
2
3 MR. MORRIS: All right. It established the right to union
4 recognition.
5
6 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Maybe it did, but I think you should put it
7 quite carefully.
8
9 MR. MORRIS: OK.
10
11 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Because, for instance, a person may not accept
12 what is being required of it by another party because they
13 are asking for too much. I do not think that is a problem
14 you have with union representation, because Mr. Mehigan's
15 position is quite clear from the arguments as recounted by
16 the Labour Court, which I assume I can accept as a fair
17 summary of both sides' stand in the matter. But I think
18 you have to put it quite accurately.
19
20 MR. MORRIS: Yes.
21
22 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Why not put your final conclusion?
23
24 MR. MORRIS: I just want to say, bearing in mind that the main
25 or the most prominent activist on the strike was dismissed
26 and that Anne Holmes -----
27
28 MR. RAMPTON: My Lord, I do think Mr. Morris is making a speech.
29
30 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Put a point first, and then if you are unhappy
31 with the answer go back.
32
33 MR. MORRIS: (To the witness) In all the circumstances that we
34 have looked into and at the end of the strike, it is not
35 surprising that anyone should draw the conclusion that the
36 Company was anti-trade union?
37
38 MR. JUSTICE BELL: It does not matter whether he thinks it is
39 surprising. That is a conclusion I have to draw one way or
40 the other. I might not express it as anti-trade union,
41 even if I thought that you had a good point on this
42 aspect.
43
44 One of the few wise words on this topic was Mr. Pattinson,
45 who said that the unions always described employers as
46 being anti-union and the employers always described
47 themselves as being non-union.
48
49 MR. MORRIS: I think you said that the wrong way round, but
50 I know what you mean.
51
52 MR. JUSTICE BELL: No. The union describes an employer which
53 will not have anything to do with unions as anti-union, and
54 the employer described himself as non-union.
55
56 MR. MORRIS: Yes. Well, the important thing is the action, is
57 it not, really? I think that is about it, really.
58
59 MR. JUSTICE BELL: What I suggest you do is just sit down for a
60 moment and consider whether you want to ask anything more
