Tenants demonstrating in front

Credit Union on East Hastings St.,
funds

using of credit union

speculators.

of the Vancouver City Savings
last Saturday to protest
blockbusting by
—Norman Nawrocki photo

to finance

CP parley to meet

Cont'd from pg. 3
progressive social legislation, lead
to further alienation of our natural
resources and tighten the grip of
the profit-greedy monopolies.

“Reaction has mounted a
powerful offensive, while some
policies of the NDP government
are dividing the labor and
democratic movements which
combined to oust the Socred
government at the polls in 1972.
The threat from the right’’,
declares the Communist Party
resolution, ‘‘makes it necessary
that a vigorous effort be mounted
to unite all the labor and
democratic forces in B.C.”

“However, for this to succeed,
policies are needed which would
unite the democratic forces. Such
policies must include revised labor
legislation which would curb the
sweeping powers of the Labor
Relations Board; elimination of
injunctions in labor disputes and
compulsory arbitration’’. Strong
emphasis was placed in the
resolution on the need to ‘“‘protect
the unfettered right of labor to
organize, strike and picket and
protect the interests of the working
class in line with labor’s demand-
ig

The resolution also called for a
massive attack on unemployment
and monopoly-rigged high prices,
including a large scale program of
low-cost, low-rental housing- halt
the surrender to monopoly
pressures, and stronger action to
curb their power and bring them
under strict controls, including
bringing under public-ownership
B.C. Tel, resource and energy
industries; repeal the Sales Tax;
bring in tax reforms to shift the
load to those best able to pay; and

more aid to education, the
municipalities and small farmers.

Emphasizing that the next
provincial election, expected next
year, will be of major import to the
people of B.C., the resolution
states, ‘‘In the situation the best
outcome of the next Provincial
election would be the election to the
Legislature of a progressive
majority, including Communists’’.

The resolution underscores that,
“the nomination of the maximum
number of Communist candidates
in the upcoming B.C. election
assumes great importance in the
fight for genuine anti-monopoly
policies; for a halt to the policy of
retreat, and to unite the working
class and democratic forces.”’

“It would be a serious error for
the Communist Party to un-
critically support the election of
the NDP or to abandon the political
field toreformism. The struggle to
build an anti-monopoly coalition is
an essential part to open the road
to fundamental change and
socialism.

B.C. needs a stronger, more
influential and bigger Communist
Party to help shape and influence
the direction of events,’’ says the
resolution.

U.S. ARMS SALES

_ SHOW BIG CLIMB
WASHINGTON — ResSults are in
for 1974 and show that the United
States is far ahead of any country
in the sale of armaments around
the world. For the year ending
June 30, 1974 U.S. sales totalled
over $8.5 billion. That’s a 500 per
cent increase in the last three
years.

UNITE AGAINST
SLAVE LABOR!

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—OCTOBER 10, 1975—Page 12

Cont'd from pg. 1
union legislation which even
surpasses the infamous Bill. 33 in
its attempt to deny the right of free
collective bargaining.
“Contrary to the statements by

the minister of labor and the-

premier, this is not neutral
legislation and might have been
prepared by the Employers
Council in that they faithfully echo
the line that disputes which are
inconvenient can not be tolerated.
In fact the real beneficiaries of this
legislation are the employers who
have seen this government go
further in serving their interests
than any previous government
dared to go.

“This Federation has a long

history of fighting repressive anti-

labor legislation. We will fight this
legislation in every way possible.
We pledge full support to any af-
filiate. which refuses to capitulate
to Bill 146 and which upholds the
democratic right to refuse to work
under compulsion. We call on trade
unionists to make every effort to
ensure the election of candidates

for the legislature who will oppose

strikebreaking and other anti-
labor legislation. We urge all trade
unionists to join in the fight against
Bill 146 and in the defense of free
collective bargaining.”

When Bill 146 was introduced on
Tuesday morning it took even the
NDP caucus by surprise who had
been informed of its contents just
one hour before. It was not long
though before labor minister King
made the governments intention
clear. ‘“‘The right to strike is not
absolute,” he declared.

Entitled the —‘‘Collective
Bargaining Continuation Act’’ the
Bill demands that 48 hours after its
passage all employeers affected by
the disputes in the forest, food
distribution, propane industries as
well as those workers on the B.C.
Railway must return to work.

For 90 days they are to be
covered by the terms of their ex-
pired collective agreement in what
King called a “‘cooling off period’.
Supposedly bargaining is to con-
tinue during the 90 days with so
called ‘‘sanctions’’ imposed
against any party who could be
shown not to have ‘‘bargained in
good faith’.

Introducting the legislation,
King castigated the labor
movement saying ‘‘We’ve had
enough of your childishness’’ —
referring to strikes — ‘“‘the rights
of private citizens have been un-
duly damaged by industrial
disputes.”

That fact King did not sub-
stantiate. In the case of the B.C.
Railway, King told the legislature
that ‘“‘there is no general or
widespread work stoppage” but he
included it in the legislature
merely because ‘‘of its past
history.’’ The reason for legislating
the forest industry back to work
was that he could see ‘“‘no solution
in the forseeable future” and in the
food industry because of the in-
convenience of the strike and a
volume of mail asking for
government action — even though

it was admitted that ‘‘alternate -

PUBLIC MEETING

HEAR NIGEL MORGAN,
IRONWORKERS HALL, 2415 COLUMBIA

Friday, October 17, — 8 p.m.

sources are available.”’

As could be expected the big
business. parties gave unanimous
support to the legislation..‘‘We are
proud to vote for this legislation,”
said Socred leader Bill Bennett.
Liberal leader Gordon Gibson
echoed his support as did Scott
Wallace of the Conservatives.

“This is an. amazing con-
tradiction,’’ Wallace pointed out in
the debate, ‘‘or else the govern-
ment has made a 180 degree turn in
its philosophy about the right to
strike.’’ . He» welcomed the
legislation saying, “‘This govern-
ment has so often been accused of

being in the hip pocket of labor. If ©

there is anything that this Bill does
it shows that the honeymoon is
over.”

It didn’t require the Con-
servative leader to point that out to
labor. The outrage of delegates to
the Vancouver Labor Council on
Tuesday evening found expression
in the words of CUPE 1004 delegate
Dave Werlin, who called. it ‘‘Black
Tuesday — a day of shame for the

Barrett government.” Werlin saif
that the fundamental issue was the
right to strike. “Are we going
debate whether we should have thé
right to strike?” he asked. ‘‘If Wt
do-we have taken a giant sté@
backwards. E

“Unless labor stands up on #
feet and forces government ?
withdraw this legislation there W#
be no one left to vote for it and W
will have a ‘return of Soci
Credit,’’ he said. F

“If there is any waffling now @
labor’s rights then working peoP™
will have to take a lower livile
standard,” carpenter’s delega™
Lorne Robson added. ‘‘That
where this kind of legislation ?
leading to.’’ 4

The council gave unanimol
approval to a resolution pledgi
“full support to any action that US
B.C. Federation might tam
against the repressive legislatiol
and also to send a telegram ©
congratulations to
Gablemann and Steves
posing the Bill.

Cont'd from pg. 1

back to work, and’ Barrett acted in
accordance with this advice.
Bennett and the Socreds speak for
big business in B.C.,’’ Morgan said.

The Party statement made the
point that Bill 146 is part. of
Barrett’s preparation for the next
election. ‘He wants to appear
before the voters as their protector
against big business and so-called
‘big labor’.

“But. in fact’’, says the
statement, ‘‘the Barrett govern-
ment has come down on the side of
big business and against labor.

“Tt is the super profits, inflation
and price-rigging engineered by
the monopolies that sparked the
unprecedented unrest among
working people. It is the Em-

ployers’ Council of British
Columbia, the voice of big
business, which skilfully or-

chestrated the current round of
confrontations with the trade
unions. ,

“The provincial government had
a rare opportunity to show
leadership. The majority of shares
in two companies in the wood and
pulp dispute, Cancel and Ocean
Falls, belong to the government.
These companies could have
settled directly with the unions and
the government could have then
brought pressure to bear on the
privately-owned companies. In-
stead, the names of the two
government companies appeared
in huge newspaper ads designed to
turn public opinion against the
wood and pulp unions.”’

Morgan drew attention to the
fact that the trade union movement
played a decisive role, along with
the teachers, in defeating the
Socreds in 1972 and in bringing the
NDP to power.

“The key issues that prouglt
labor and teacher support to ¥®
NDP was opposition to anti-lat
legislation and opposition
compulsory arbitration impos
by the Socred government.

“Now, the NDP government
playing the same role aS
Socreds before 1972. rq
collective bagaining is in gr@™
danger. That proves the corre’
ness of the B.C. Federation =
Labor position that labor ee
maintain its independencé q
relation to the NDP, governme!”
particularly in matters affect
the livelihood of working p&l
and the collective bargainill
process,”’ Morgan said. é

“The passage of Bill 146 prov
the contention of the Commul!
Party that while it was an adval”
when the Socreds were defea P
1972, the election of an ND
government did not in itsé
guarantee that the needs of the
people would be met. if

“There can be no neutrality 4)
the struggle between labor
capital. Unfortunately, the Bat
government came down on the >
of big business. f

“This decision points up the 1®
to unite all the democratic i
anti-monopoly forces both ins!
and outside of the legislature, ve
the trade union movement se? i
as the mass base. What. ‘
especially urgent at this time Bo
united labor fight against Bill ‘i

“Three NDP members of ‘
legislature, Colin Gablem*,
Harold Steves, and Rosemé
Brown, are to be congratulated f
voting against Bill 146. The posi
of such members would be gr Se
strengthened if they were joined ‘
Communist MLA’s after the ™
provincial election.”

Bis reins SS

=

rel!
i0?

B.C. Leader,
Communist Party