Day 125 - 12 May 95 - Page 20
1 MR. JUSTICE BELL: I would like to ask you a question and then
2 we will have the five-minute break. That 70 per cent
3 figure is rather higher than it is in this country, and it
4 occurs to me that there may be sociological reasons for
5 that, which I want to try to understand, in case it is
6 completely misplaced, in that a large proportion of young
7 people in America work their way through college?
8 A. That is correct.
9
10 Q. Not many in this country totally support themselves by
11 their own labour while they study. When I was a student a
12 lot of young people did, to a very considerable extent, but
13 in recent years it certainly has not been easy to find
14 employment, even when you are on vacation. So there is a
15 different setup in the States to the United Kingdom, in my
16 own experience anyway.
17 A. That is correct, your observations are -----
18
19 Q. Are a significant portion of that 70 per cent people who
20 have been crew as they work their way through universities,
21 and then have then come to the Corporation for a permanent
22 career after university, or not?
23 A. That is true. Your observations are correct. A good
24 number of our people were employed by us while they were in
25 high school, while they were in college. Many of them when
26 they graduated from college went off to work somewhere
27 else, and decided to come back to McDonald's because of the
28 opportunity for advancement, and just the fact they
29 enjoyed -----
30
31 Q. They would form part of that 70 per cent?
32 A. Yes.
33
34 Q. They would qualify for that 70 per cent?
35 A. They would be a significant part of that 70 per cent.
36
37 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Shall we have the five-minute break there?
38
39 (Short Adjournment).
40
41 MS. STEEL: On the following page, bundle page 88, under the
42 section about hiring procedures "What are you looking for
43 in your future employees?" The final one of those is "You
44 also want people with a high energy level, the pace at
45 McDonald's is fast, and those who tire easily might become
46 discouraged quickly". Would you agree with that statement?
47 A. Yes, McDonald's is not for everyone. The food industry
48 is not for everyone. It is a demanding business. Our
49 public, our consumers, want a fast, efficient, courteous
50 service. They want consistently well-prepared products and
51 clean surroundings. They do not want any excuses. They
52 want it day in and day out, so it puts great demands on a
53 management team and the crew of a restaurant; not just
54 McDonald's.
55
56 Q. But the pace of work is fast?
57 A. Pardon?
58
59 Q. The pace of work is fast, though?
60 A. From time to time. During the course of the day.
