pas
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_ retirement problems.”

The 19th Annual Delegated
Meeting of Local 1-184 IWA,
Prince Albert, Saskatchewan,
held June 24th, was marred by
the news of Regional ist Vice-
President Stan Parker’s un-
timely death early that mor-

Brother Parker, who had
acted as chief spokesman for
the Local Union in numerous
sets of negotiations, was to
have been the keynote speaker
at the meeting.

The meeting held in Prince
Albert was attended by ap-
proximately sixty members.
Business included the usual
election of delegates to the
various conventions and con-
ferences, approving the Of-
ficers’ and Financial Reports
and dealing with resolutions.

The delegates approved a
resolution calling for a- $5.00
dues assessment for a four
month period to build the Local

funds. As in money matters of °

this nature the proposal will go
out on a referendum ballot to
the membership.

The meeting also approved a
recommendation of the Execu-
tive Board to study the feasi-
bility of the Local Union pur-
chasing its own building. The

Board pointed out that at pre-

Kevin Collins, senior econo-
mist with the CLC and author
of ‘Women and Pensions”
says the position of women has
been largely ignored in the
current debate concerning
pensions.

Appearing before the Royal
Commission on the Status of
Pensions in Ontario, Collins
pointed out that to a large ex-
tent society still views men as
working for pay (including
pensions) and women as work-
ing for love. ‘“‘Men rest at the
end of a hard day’s work or at
the end of a career, but ‘wo-
men’s work is never done’. In
this context, women can’t have

However, the submission
noted that Canada’s elderly

population is becoming in-
creasingly female dominated.
It referred to Statistics Canada

_ reports that in 1976, there were

128 women over 65 years of age

sent the Local by paying rent
was not building any member-
ship equity and for the amount
spent on rent it was their con-
sidered opinion that the Local
would be far better off to own
its own offices.

Guest speakers included
Regional 3rd Vice-President
Neal Menard, Local 1-425 Pre-
sident Harvey Arcand, Local 1-
324 President Bill Benson, and
Executive Secretary of the
Saskatchewan Federation of
Labour Larry Brown.

Menard in an excellent ad-
dress paid tribute to the work
carried out by Brother Stan
Parker in the Prairie Locals.
He listed the various areas
where Brother Parker’s nego-
tiating ability had raised the
living and working conditions
of the members to the point of
achieving parity with IWA
members on the B.C. Coast.

In some instances, Menard
stated, Brother Parker was
able to win contract gains that
were more costly to the Prairie
employers because of the
fringe benefits included in the
package.

Menard then went on to dis-
cuss the future of Local 1-184,
which he suggested had great
potential. He praised the re-

for every 100 men. By the year
2001, it is.estimated this will
have risen to 149 females over
65 per 100 males. Aso, the ma-
jority of women over 65 are liv-
ing below the poverty line. The
submission quoted the Senate
Committee on Poverty which
estimated that in 1975, just
over half of all unattached wo-
men 65 to 69 were poor, while
over two-thirds of unattached
women 70 and over were poor.

An area of particular con-
cern to women in the private
pension system is the question
of survivor’s benefits, Collins
said. ‘In 1974, only four per
cent of private plans provided

~ a widow’s pension as an addi-

tional benefit in the event of
death of the participating
member before retirement. In
the case of death after retire-
ment, the comparable figure
was only two per cent.”
Collins recommended “that

MONTREAL (CPA) — In

_ what is believed to be the first

such case in Quebec’s history,

at the Universite de
real, inv ted the
r of the

of

Union

QUEBEC ARBITRATOR
- BACKS WORKERS’ CASE

Rousseau also ordered the
company to reduce noise levels
on the machinery and to ensure
dust levels in the area, which
had been abnormally high,

dropped to a safer mark.

The Steelworkers’ contract
at the plant provides for a
health and safety committee,
which will oversee imple-
mentation of the directive.

The union members who re-
fused to work had been re-
loeated in another part of the
plant while the hearing went
on, and were replaced at their

urers hired — property, viewing pensions as

THE WESTERN CANADIAN LUMBER WORKER

straint the Local officers were
exercising in financial matters

and the Local’s militant stand .

in pressing for improved
wages and working conditions
for the members.

Arcand and Benson brought
fraternal greetings from their
respective Local Unions and
Brown gave a short report on
the activities and programmes
of the Saskatchewan Federa-
tion. :

The short and concise Offi-
cers’ Report covered the-major
points of interest during the
past year. It noted that the
Local was in a better financial
position this year than last
year and the officers were
seeking further means to cut
costs.

The Report also mentioned
operations that were or are on
strike and praised the mem-
bers for their militancy and
trade union spirit.

Other areas of the Report
covered the fields of safety,
negotiations, and service,
education and organizing.

At the conclusion of the
meeting the Local sponsored
its annual banquet and dance
which was enjoyed by all in at-
tendance.

the provision of a survivor’s
benefit as an additional bene-
fit, not be a mandatory feature
of private plans, but that what
is now often an optional feature
— a reduced pension for the
plan member plus a benefit for
the survivor — become a
mandatory feature unless both
spouses sign off this arrange-
ment.”

The question of vesting is al-
so an important issue for wo-
men, who, because of their
higher job turnover rate which
follows from their child-
rearing responsibilities as well
as their poorer jobs, are less
likely to meet most current re-
quirements (i.e. after 10 years
of service and 45 years of age).

Among his recommenda-
tions for the public pension
system, Collins called for an
increase in the income guaran-
tee levels under the Guaran-
teed Income Supplement pro-
grams, as well as acknowl-
edgements of the value of
housework through a social
insurance plan. In the latter
case, he urged the Ontario gov-
ernment to remove its veto
over the “‘drop-out’’ provision
passed in federal legislation so
that time at home with chil-
dren up to seven years of age
would not be counted as zero
earnings time in CPP benefit
calculations.

The need was also pointed
out for a system of ‘‘general-
splitting’ for the CPP where
pension credits would be split
between spouses on a continu-
ous basis rather than only upon
divorce. This change, said
Collins, ‘‘would recognize the
combined contribution of
spouses to the acquisition of

.

JULY, 1978

1-207 OFFICERS REPORT .
LOCAL’S FINANCES GOOD

tor of. Organization Frank
Stich; Local 1-184 President

All positions with the excep-
tion of Financial Secretary and
Recording Secretary are being
contested in the election of of-
ficers in Local 1-207 IWA,
Edmonton, Alberta. 3

Nominations were conducted
at the Local’s Annual Dele-
gated Meeting held June 3rd in
the Union Centre, Edmonton.

Those nominated and whose
names will go out on.a referen-
dum ballot are: for President
— Joe Pirker, Jean Lapierre;
1st Vice-President — Ed.
Henry, Esther James; 2nd
Vice-President — Keith Fin-
nen, Reg. Phipps; 3rd Vice-
President — Michael Pisak,
Bruce McLean; Warden —
Wayne Zolmer, Anna Sharun;
Conductor — Wendy Fraser,
Rose Sinclair; Six-Year Trus-
tee — Merel Bachelder, Seth
Barnfield; Four-Year Trustee

— Fern Morais, Margaret
Toews; Two-Year Trustee —
Tony Simpson, Paul
Schroeder.

Elected by acclamation were
Bob DeLeeuw,
Secretary and William Som-
merfeld, Recording Secretary
DeLeeuw was also reelected
Regional Executive Board
Member by acclamation.

Invited speakers included
International 1st Vice-Presi-
dent Ferni Viala; Regional 1st
Vice-President Stan Parker;
Regional 3rd Vice-President
Neil Menard; Assistant Direc-

Financial

Bud Massey; NDP Alberta
Leader Grant Notley.

In the election of delegates to
attend the coming Regional
Convention the following were
elected: Bob DeLeeuw; Jean
Noel Lapierre; Larry Feather-
ston; Keith Finnen; Anna
Sharun; Tony Simpson.

The meeting also dealt with a
number of resolutions and ap-
proved the Officers’ Report.
The Report noted the increase
in membership largely due to
the merger with the Southern
IWA Alberta Local.

The Local was in a good
sound financial position, the
officers stated, but future com-
mitments for educational
schools and seminars would
draw considerably on these fi-
nancial resources.

The Local in the last year
negotiated eight new contracts
and had several of these rolled
back to varying degrees in the
first guideline year by the Anti-
Inflation Board.

The officers also reported
winning a number, of arbitra-
tion cases and taking one com-
pany to the Supreme Court of
Alberta which reversed an
arbitration ruling and the em-
ployee won a $3,000 cash settle-
ment.

Following the meeting the
Local sponsored its annual
banquet and dance.

SKIM MILK ISSUE .
SCORED BY NYSTROM

By LORNE NYSTROM

_ While Agriculture minister
Whelan remains firm in his
refusal to include the skim
milk subsidy in his budget,
Consumer and Corporate
Affairs minister Warren All-
mand has indicated that he
would like to see some form of
the subsidy reinstated.

As one of the most backward
food policy steps in recent
years, this issue continues to
attract critical attention.

Whelan did hint that the Can-
adian Dairy Commission
might be willing to pick up the
cost of the subsidy as an in-
ternal program. However, the
CDC claims the only subsidy
being contemplated for Can-
ada was for skim milk powder
as cattle feed!

It has been the NDP position

ee ep ES Oia

that the removal of the subsidy
imposes a nutritional hardship
on low-income and Northern
residents.

Ina letter to Wally Firth, MP
(NDP-Northwest Territories),
Whelan argued that skim milk
powder, without the subsidy,
was still a good buy — com-

pared to fluid milk in the north. .

Fluid milk, (2%), costs $2.90
per litre in Norman Wells,
NWT — a price Whelan calls
“outrageous’’.

This seems like twisted logic "

— equivalent to saying that
price hikes on Volkswagens
are acceptable because Cadil-
lacs still cost much more.

It is obvious that we need a
transportation and distribution
policy which delivers nutri-

tious food at reasonable prices

to all areas of our country.

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