Day 173 - 16 Oct 95 - Page 59


     
     1        145 cannot be -- sorry, 45 cannot be the majority, can it?
     2        A.  No, 45 out of 150 is not.
     3
     4   Q.   Especially if it includes management as well, which are not
     5        ----
     6        A.  I think there were two managers that we can see, right.
     7
     8   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  I am not assuming it is the majority.
     9        Subject to anything Mr. Rampton says, the evidence is that
    10        only a minority were members of a union.  I say "the
    11        evidence is" -- that is what the union case was.
    12
    13   MR. MORRIS:  But the union's case was that the majority of
    14        full-timers ----
    15
    16   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Where do you get that?
    17
    18   MR. MORRIS:  If we look at page 978 we see an official leaflet
    19        of the Irish Transport and General Workers' Union official
    20        strike.  The second sentence says, "30 workers were
    21        employed by McDonald's in O'Connell Street and Graphton
    22        Street are now on strike".  It talks about union
    23        recognition and wages and condition matters.  Then it goes
    24        on - they have some criticisms about the wages and the lack
    25        of breaks and late working at night; McDonald's' worldwide
    26        reputation was anti-union -- yes, the third line of the big
    27        paragraph says, the second line, "They refused point blank
    28        to negotiate with the union representing many of their
    29        workers - indeed, nearly 80 per cent of the full-time staff
    30        in the Graphton Street premises".  That does not ----
    31
    32   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Yes, but I cannot accept that as evidence.
    33        It seems to me completely inconsistent with the union's
    34        arguments at the labour court because they said there that
    35        it has the right and responsibility to negotiate on behalf
    36        of its members, and the fact that its members represent a
    37        minority of the workforce is irrelevant.  I would have
    38        thought that if they really could establish that 80 per
    39        cent of the full-time workers were members they would have
    40        made that point.  But I just do not know, do I?
    41
    42   MR. MORRIS:  The point is, the full-time workers are only a
    43        minority of McDonald's workers.
    44
    45   MR. JUSTICE BELL: I have that point and I was trying to make the
    46        point for you earlier that it may be much more significant
    47        proportion of full-time workers whom it might thought are
    48        much more concerned about pay especially if it is their
    49        only source of income, whereas a part-time I think I am
    50        entitled to take judicial knowledge though the fact has got 
    51        some other source of income which means that although they 
    52        are part-time pay is important it is not quite as vital as 
    53        it is to the full-time workers.
    54
    55   MR. MORRIS:  They may be transitory just passing through.
    56
    57   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  They may have a student grant; they may have
    58        parents who are subsidising their accommodation, if they
    59        are youngsters; they may have some other source of
    60        employment, and the part-time pay is to bolster their

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