Day 118 - 01 May 95 - Page 74
1 I was often invited by -----
2
3 MR. JUSTICE BELL: How productive is this going to be? The case
4 of anything where there may be a risk of something going
5 wrong, surely someone has to make an assessment of whether
6 there is a risk and how great it is and, therefore, what
7 degree of supervision is required and how high that goes up
8 the chain of management. I would invite you not to make a
9 general exploration. You have asked your question on
10 this. It follows what from Mr. Nicholson has said that he
11 did not think it required him to check on whether the law
12 in relation to 15-year olds was being observed.
13
14 MR. MORRIS: Are there any examples in that period, say 1989/90,
15 when you thought you were required because of illegalities
16 or because a particular manager did not get on with the
17 supervisor, were there reasons where you had to visit?
18 A. 1989/90.
19
20 Q. Or would you just make general visits when you were going
21 around?
22 A. I mean, there were certain stores, there was a store
23 that someone said they had cut their face on a piece of
24 glass; it was a franchise store and they chewed on a piece
25 of glass and cut their lip. The glass was supposed to have
26 been in a cheeseburger. It was a franchise store. It was
27 a security matter. I went up and dealt with it personally
28 because the franchisee asked me to. I would have dealt
29 with that one.
30
31 Q. As head of security? It was a security matter?
32 A. It was a security matter. It was also a franchise
33 store and I was responsible for franchised stores. He
34 particularly asked me to come up and see him and I did. If
35 someone particularly asks me to go I go, unless there is a
36 good reason for me not to go but I try.
37
38 Q. Can I ask you something a little bit off the subject but
39 maybe to finish off with. You were Head of Personnel and
40 you said you were concerned with welfare?
41 A. Yes.
42
43 Q. --- of staff, is that correct?
44 A. Yes.
45
46 Q. And that you had brought some of your experience in the
47 Metropolitan Police into McDonald's as regards employee
48 welfare. Is that correct? It is not a trick question.
49 A. No, I know. I think I was asked, did my training in
50 the Metropolitan Police, my position in the Metropolitan
51 Police, enable me to perform this function and I said
52 "yes".
53
54 Q. Does McDonald's take a concern about their staff welfare in
55 terms of, say, for example, staff inevitably are going to
56 have problems with family credit or housing benefit or
57 things like that, does McDonald's advise staff of their
58 rights?
59 A. Oh, yes, we would give that kind of advice to staff.
60 If they had problems with something at all or anything of
