(Cartoon published in the “UE Voice of the Worker”, official monthly organ of UE Locals in Canadian General Electric Plants.) Vietnam war is main _ cause of inflation ‘Describing the U.S. war in’ Vietnam as the main cause of inflation, Gilbert Levine, Cana- dian research director for the Canadian Union of Public Em- ployees accused the Trudeau government. of refusing to take a stand on both the war and in- flation. At a press conference called last week to announce the 50 percent wage increase and other demands of over 15,500 manual and clerical employees of Toron- to and five Metro-Toronto bo- roughs, Mr. Levine,. speaking of today’s blamed “external causes—about two-thirds of what’s happening is in the United States. The main cause is the Vietnam war. When our government says it won't . take a stand on the war, it’s say- ing it won’t take a stand on in- flation.” : The CUPE research director dismissed the idea that the civic employees’ proposed wage in- creases — they would amount to an average increase of $60 a week per worker — are infla- tionary. “The proposed — in- creases,” he said, “are an ex- pression of what the members’ need in an inflationary period.” The workers, mériBer$’ of 21°" inflationary — period . a one-year contract starting Jan. 1: Although meetings to arrange negotiations are pro- ceeding between individual lo- cals and the boroughs and ‘boards of education in Metro- -Toronto, the demands are the same for all the locals. “We have a wide difference in benefits now,” explained Mr. Levine, “and we hope. to standardize wages and conditions of employ- ment.” The union’s demands, apart from the 50 percent wage in- crease, include 100 percent. em- ~ ployer payment of health and welfare premiums; a cost of liv- _ing escalator clause, equal rates _ for the same job classification regardless of which of the muni- ‘cipal bodies is the employer. Ad- ditional demands are for three weeks’ vacation after one year of employment for all the work- ers, and collective bargaining of pension benefits. CUPE is also ‘seeking to end -the: municipali- ties’ power to punish workers who refuse to ‘cross picket lines. _ Caretakers and maintenance workers, office. workers, anside and outside workers, bus Crivers -and a number of library em- on fronting ‘the At a press conference called by the Communist Party of Can- ada upon the return of its New workers’ gains forecast for 1970's relationships between the two countries. This would involve a resumption of trade and the links of communication, such as the national. leader, William Kash-—aitroad, telephone and other tan, from Moscow, where he had a series of conversations. with leading members of the Com- munist “Party of the ‘Soviet Union, Mr. Kashtan said that the Soviet: Union was decidedly in- terested in Canadian trade, in- cluding buying Canadian wheat. But, he said, the Soviet Union does not see any permanency in the kind of trade there has been up to now. Trade is a two-way street, and if Canada wants to secure permanent markets, it. must begin buying as well as selling. Mr. Kashtan said that he was certain from his talks with the Ambassador of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam to the U.S.S.R. in Moscow, that the D.R.V. was decidedly interested in establishing trade relations with Canada. To establish such trade with both countries, he said, would be an assertion of — Canadian independence, and a blow to the domination of our country by U.S. monopoly. Mr. Kashtan said he was op- timistic about the future, parti- cularly because the internatio- nal conference of Communist and Worker’s parties had reach- ed agreement on the main poli- cies at the recent meeting, and that this agreement was having far-reaching consequences in the struggle to secure world peace. He hoped that the future European . Security Conference would include Canada, because Canada has a stake in the peace- ful settling of differences and establishment of European se- curity. Canada, he said, has in this century twice been involved in world wars that started’ in Europe, which makes European peace imperative for Canada. He said that the negotiations between -China and. the. Soviet Union . were encouraging,..and could-lead. to an easing of inter-. national: tensions. The main hope ployees HS AROS UNSEE, CON 5 was, that the borderequestion SiX tre -Loronto Joents- OF CUBEM Bre askihe PoP!’ Municipalities in nego-iations. PACIFIC TRIBUNE—-JANUARY 2, 1970—Page 4 would be settled, with a return to normal trade and diplomatic communications... , He said that the Chinese had wanted to have a declaration ' from the U.S.S.R. that the trea- ties of previous years were un- equal, That, of course, could not be agreed to, no more than we could agree “to hand Canada back to the Indians.” The only reasonable approach is to resolve the border conflict on the basis of justice for both sides, to re- sume normal state relationships, and to recognize that there are ideological differences that will remain for some time. It is not necessary, of course, to settle differences of opinion by war, he said. In answer to a question about events in Czechoslovakia and the Canadian Communists’ posi- tion, Mr. Kashtan said that the Communist Party of Canada supported the action of the War- saw Pact countries, that he had met Dr. Husak in June, and that Dr. Husak had invited the Can- adian Party to send a delegation to see for itself. In fact, said Mr. Kashtan, he has extended that invitation to all Communist parties in the world. In discussing the question of national sovereignty, Mr. Kash- tan pointed out that under the provisions of the NATO pact, which had been opposed by the Communist Party from the out- __set,. there were agreements.that.. gave NATO countries the right to intervene in the internal af- fairs of a member state. The pur- pose and character of NATO, he said, includes the right to inter- fere in the internal affairs of other countries. | Asked. what. the. Communist Party would. do if it were elect- ed, and. how it would prevent .U.S. intervention, Mr. Kashtan said that the Communist Party would immediately. take steps . to establish friendly relations with all countries, including the USA... BHT gg (Gd. The Communist Party would take steps to nationalize US-_ owned Canadian resources in- dustries. It would, under some circumstances, consider com- pensation for such nationaliza- tion, but not the kind of com- pensation incorporated in estab- lishing the CNR, which saddles Canadians. with a great debt burden. : He believed that the U.S. im- perialists would not find it pos- sible, or certainly not easy, to attack Canada under those cir- cumstances. ‘We rely on the working class of the United States and Latin America,” he said. “The world has changed and is changing. Big events are shaping up. in France: and Italy. which will even further shift the balance against American impe- rialism.” He said that the Communist Party thinks the initial steps to social change in Canada may be taken through a democratic al- liance and a national anti-mono- poly government that would un- dertake democratic reform meas- ures. Such a government would adopt measures to secure Cana- dian independence and to curb. the great power of the mono- polies. Under such a set-up a wider democracy would give the Cana- ‘dian people a say in the running of their country, in how the technological and scientific re- volution would be used to bene- fit everyone. Such a government would reflect the rights of the working people, the farmers and the youth, he said. Mr. Kashtan ended on the note that the 1960’s had been fraught with significant class struggles, and that the 1970’s would be marked with further gains for the working class of Canada.