Day 188 - 15 Nov 95 - Page 28


     
     1        through, so he was obviously tired, because he carried on
     2        from his ordinary shift and then worked through the night.
     3
     4        So I think there was that kind of exhaustion of workers who
     5        were doing that kind of number of hours on the trot and
     6        keeping going at that level of pressure.
     7
     8        I mean, I think, probably, there were just not enough
     9        workers to deal with that situation.  Whether that was
    10        because people had not turned up or because, you know, it
    11        is done at the lowest level of labour, I would not care to
    12        say.  But it seemed to me that there were not enough people
    13        able to cope with the immense operation that it is --
    14        because it is a huge operation; I mean, it really is.
    15        Until you actually see the store being stripped down and
    16        put back together again, you do not realise the immensity
    17        of it.  There is a lot of people -- not a lot of people --
    18        there are few people working extremely hard to try and do
    19        that, and intense pressure on them to do it; and it is
    20        very, very hard for them to keep going.
    21
    22   Q.   I will carry on reading the statement.
    23
    24        "During the lunch and early evening rush times, staff were
    25        hassled, stood over by the shift managers and nagged
    26        endlessly.  I saw members of staff driven to tears.  On one
    27        occasion, I saw two crew members working on the Big Macs
    28        being watched and shouted at by four supervisors."
    29
    30        Was that the situation you mentioned before, that you were
    31        stopped from filming?
    32        A.  There was a moment in the filming, yes, when I think
    33        there were so many managers -----
    34
    35   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  You are being asked by Mr. Morris whether
    36        this is the occasion you had in mind?
    37        A.  That is the incident that I had in mind, yes.  Sorry.
    38
    39   MR. MORRIS:  There is a reference to that in the notes on
    40        page 18 of the notes, according to my records here.
    41
    42        "At the Croydon store, one of the lads, a full-time
    43        worker, some 18 years old, drank a carton of milk during
    44        the height of the pressure on his shift.  You are only
    45        supposed to drink and eat McDonald's food during food
    46        breaks.  He was instantly sacked as a result of this."
    47
    48        This is what you saw, is it?
    49        A.  Yes.
    50 
    51   Q.   How do you know he was sacked? 
    52        A.  Because the manager said: "You are sacked.  Leave the 
    53        store."
    54
    55   Q.   Sorry, the reference of that page 18 relates to the staff
    56        member being driven to tears, not being shouted at by four
    57        supervisors.  If I can continue with the statement:
    58
    59        "At the Strand store, I never saw anyone allowed to leave
    60        at the official end of their shift.  The pattern was to

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