Day 161 - 24 Jul 95 - Page 36
1 Q. Sorry, hold on one second, please. The voice over of that
2 shot said: "It is a lot of pressure. It is very hot, and
3 sometimes you have got the Manager standing over you, sort
4 of, really. You know, it does your brain in. When it is
5 busy, it is just mind blowing. I detest it."
6
7 Do some crew members feel that, really, it is just too much
8 for them?
9 A. When it is, the pressure is of course there. So it is
10 hot; they are cooking. Sometimes crew do feel -- you know,
11 it is pressurised in fast food. They do.
12
13 MR. MORRIS: If we continue, please.
14
15 (Video film continued to be played)
16
17 MR. MORRIS: Can you stop it, please? Do you know Peter? Do
18 you remember Peter?
19 A. Yes, I do.
20
21 Q. Peter Iles?
22 A. Yes.
23
24 Q. He said: "You are not so much" -- sorry, was he First
25 Assistant or Floor Manager at that time?
26 A. I do not know. It was not my restaurant, so -----
27
28 Q. I am sorry. I did not realise. That is Croydon, is it?
29 Just hold on one second, please. So, his voice over there
30 -- did you remember him fairly well?
31 A. Yes, I did.
32
33 Q. The voice over there said: "You are not so much told to do
34 seven days a week at 24 hours a day, but it is the type of
35 hours you have to do to complete the task that you are
36 given. Whereas the position I am in, I do my hours, I do a
37 lot of extra hours, but I do like to spend time at home
38 with my child."
39
40 At that level, First Assistant and above, is it sometimes
41 the case that people at that level do spend a lot of hours
42 extra in the store, compared to, you know, the 39 or 40
43 hours scheduled salaried position?
44 A. Generally, people are scheduled for eight hours, a day
45 shift, and they would stay extra if they have something
46 else, personally, they want to achieve within the
47 restaurant; so you ask the individuals whether they want to
48 stay or not. That is my experience.
49
50 Q. But whether it is because they wish to or whether because
51 they have to, the people at that level often do work, say,
52 60 or 70 hours a week at that level, do they?
53 A. Nobody spends 60 or 70 hours in the restaurant, in my
54 experience, again, in my store. I do spend 52 hours a
55 week; that is, I want to accomplish something with what
56 I am doing or on the shift I am running. First Assistants
57 do the same thing; they stay behind; and they have to put
58 extra -- if somebody is ambitious and wants to get
59 promoted, wants to do some extra hours, it is up to the
60 individuals.
