Day 303 - 19 Nov 96 - Page 23
1 Chicago 1978, we heard how a majority of McDonald's workers
2 joined an union from Mike Soriano, who gave evidence for
3 us. A company took legal action to stop recognition for
4 the union. Did they welcome the union, did they welcome
5 the majority of their workers being interested in
6 representation? No, they took legal action to stop it.
7
8 MR. JUSTICE BELL: The majority of their workers -- was that the
9 one where it was a majority at one store and the argument
10 about-----
11
12 MR. MORRIS: That is right, yes, and we heard from Mr. Soriano
13 of course, all about that, and his evidence is, as we say,
14 the only live grass roots evidence, if you can put it that
15 way, regarding the conditions and culture in the stores in
16 the USA available in this case from the position of crew.
17 They were told that they would have to get a majority from
18 eight stores run by the franchisee. Instead of being given
19 a mediator being able to do the impossible and actually get
20 an union established in one store, they were given yet
21 another hurdle to overcome. Of course, he was
22 discriminated against, we have heard.
23
24 Detroit 1980, we heard from our witness that after workers
25 in the store joined an union the Company organised a visit
26 by a top baseball star, staff disco, McBingo, games, prior
27 to elections for union representation. They managed to
28 thereby distract, and distract workers, from the issue at
29 hand, which of course was union representation and, of
30 course, trying to gain their loyalty, the company tried to
31 gain their loyalty through these techniques.
32
33 The union organiser gave evidence for us about that. I am
34 just touching these very briefly because I am sure you have
35 made notes.
36
37 Arkansas, USA 1983, the UFCW Union, which was interested in
38 recruiting McDonald's workers, was involved in a different
39 dispute in a chicken processing plant supplying
40 McDonald's. The union launched a boycott of McDonald's
41 McNuggets products, and picketed many of its stores.
42 Mr. Stein spent up to what he said "80 per cent" of a whole
43 year fighting the union's campaign. The only reason
44 he spent 80 per cent of a whole year is because he saw this
45 campaign as potentially being able to reach a substantial
46 amount of McDonald's workers from a well established base
47 outside McDonald's, and potentially then that McDonald's
48 workers would start to unionise.
49
50 MR. JUSTICE BELL: What was the evidence in relation to that?
51
52 MR. MORRIS: That is just our conclusion of the effect of the
53 evidence. There is no reason why Mr. Stein, who is-----
54
55 MR. JUSTICE BELL: What evidence was there from which I could
56 conclude that that was so, that they would actually enlist,
57 recruit, people working in McDonald's stores as a result of
58 the dispute at the suppliers?
59
60 MR. MORRIS: The evidence I cannot remember, I have not got my
