Day 294 - 05 Nov 96 - Page 33


     
     1        had been working at McDonald's, I think, for five years, or
     2        something, overall.  He was a floor manager, so he knew
     3        what he was talking about.
     4
     5        Another floor manager, Danny Olive, gave evidence backing
     6        Mr. Logan's criticisms; and he had also resigned after
     7        making complaints about conditions at the store.  In
     8        particular, the additional concern was the irresponsibility
     9        of McDonald's in using inappropriate equipment or equipment
    10        that was not working properly, and, in the case of the
    11        RCDs, actively impeding safety mechanisms in order to
    12        maintain the constant flow of food to customers.
    13
    14        I think -- I have not got notes about it -- that Alan Beech
    15        was also, there was a substantial amount of evidence of
    16        undercooking there.
    17
    18        But I think that the point is, our case is, the systematic
    19        inbuilt flaws due to the high pressured high turnover,
    20        inexperienced, general conditions that exist in McDonald's
    21        stores, and the fragility of the procedures.
    22
    23        I mean, for example, we heard that the salmonella -- that
    24        incident where the girl was served an undercooked or
    25        uncooked chicken product -- sorry, I can't remember now --
    26        that was unfit for human consumption, was as a result of
    27        the staff not recognising flashing lights or being confused
    28        by the different flashing lights.  I can't remember now who
    29        it was who said they would be looking into that and maybe
    30        changing the system.
    31
    32        The point is that that, we would say, is not only a
    33        fragility, but it is a flaw, because of the significant
    34        percentage of staff at McDonald's (probably the majority)
    35        who you could describe as inexperienced.
    36
    37        I think McDonald's, at one stage in this case, claimed that
    38        staff would only work on equipment they had been trained
    39        for and that they would be "buddied up", and all this kind
    40        of stuff.  But that was not the reality that came out of
    41        the evidence when the employment witnesses came to court;
    42        even McDonald's employment witnesses, I think.  The reality
    43        was: you get on with it, once you arrive at the store, you
    44        get on with it, and you do what needs to be done and you
    45        learn as you go.
    46
    47        Mike Logan was explaining how he had to keep checking
    48        inexperienced staff, in particular, because of equipment
    49        failures that they would not recognise.  So, when there are
    50        equipment failures, because of the lack of experience of
    51        staff at McDonald's, that is a flaw.  It is not just that
    52        there are equipment failures, but the fact is that people
    53        are so inexperienced and so much under pressure that it is
    54        inevitable that they are not going to notice for some
    55        time.
    56
    57        Finally on this section, on this issue, on the subject of
    58        additives and the health concerns about additives, we have
    59        the acute reactions that can occur related to
    60        hyperactivity, what is called hyperactivity, which has been

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