Day 150 - 07 Jul 95 - Page 61
1 so to speak, which has no direct influence on sales for
2 that particular day but certainly may make people come back
3 and visit you afterwards. That is what he meant by that.
4
5 Q. So it had got to a point where he felt the service was not
6 up to what he wanted to see?
7 A. No, far from it. Far from it. I think one of the
8 reasons that the store got Store of the Year and I got
9 Supervisor of the Year was for anything but under-manning
10 the store. I think the sales growth, the development of
11 people in the store was down to the fact that we had
12 everything right. But it is not perfect and you can always
13 be better, and as I do now with restaurants that are
14 running perfectly well, I am sure I can add something which
15 can dot I's and cross T's and bring them up to a slightly
16 higher level. Nobody is perfect.
17
18 MR. MORRIS: On that subject of the increase in staffing will
19 increase sales?
20 A. Yes.
21
22 Q. And increase, therefore, profitability; yes?
23 A. Hopefully.
24
25 Q. Have you ever seen a memo or directive gone out from Head
26 Office encouraging the taking on of more staff in order to
27 increase profitability?
28 A. No.
29
30 Q. Profitability is something that McDonald's cares very much
31 about, is it not?
32 A. We are a business, absolutely. So it is part and
33 parcel of surviving as a business.
34
35 Q. Anything that will increase profitability would be
36 something the Company would be very concerned all the
37 stores knew about?
38 A. Actually it is a good point, because certainly if I was
39 to over-staff the restaurant to the extent where it would
40 probably harm the profitability. So it goes back to my
41 idea, if you like, of achieving that balance. If I needed
42 maybe ten people to staff that particular shift, 12 would
43 certainly give an added service; but if I had 20, then
44 doubling the number on the shift would probably add very
45 little, but increase my costs and therefore decrease my
46 profitability. So it is a balance.
47
48 MR. JUSTICE BELL: If, at any stage, you want to sit down as you
49 give your evidence just pull the chair forward,
50 Mr. Stanton.
51
52 MS. STEEL: I am just running through your statement at the
53 moment. On page 229 at paragraph 8 you say that you cannot
54 recall the drains being blocked at the Colchester store?
55 A. That is correct.
56
57 Q. Do you not recall anything to do with that?
58 A. No, I do not.
59
60 Q. Would you expect to know if that happened?
