nfo]. Hf. No. 4. OS 5 Cents of Vancouver, B.C., Saturday, Jan. 30, 1943 me} hop Stewards Plan +0 Consolidate hipyard Union =}Shop stewards of the Boilermakers union meeting Wed- = sday to consider the report of the CCL appointed commis- g2 investigating affairs of affiliated unions expressed their dsntion to consolidating their organization and urged man- uments to help them to preserve harmony in the shipbuilding }ustry by continuing to honor their closed shop agreements. i It was reported that managements have declared they will \itinue to recognize the shop stewards in all dealings with men and have already forbidden certain Congress organ- ‘rs to enter the yards. _ Report of the commission, which included the suspension the [WA B.C. District Council, and the Boilermakers and mn Shipbuilders, Local No. 1, proposed to reorganize workers dé nos man | ~ (Continued on Page 4) pecial WA District souncil Meeting Called Action of the CCL two-man commission in suspending six ) Js and the entire membership of the IWA does not in any 1 interfere with our district or local charter in Canada,” jiel Morgan emphasized in an interview with The People ; week. ‘similarly, our funds and the ; mal functioning of our union not affected by the move. Our ict Council will continue to act ‘it has in the past as the legis ve mouthpiece of our member- fo im this district. The action 5 mot interfere with TWA co- 4 ration with other labor organi- ‘Pons for the benefit of labor as thole. j The action of the investigating "§imittee in suspending the TWA A my opinion grossly unfair and g@onstitutional. President Prit- 4qct was singled out for special ick by the commission and on jl basis that the Council must be sp0nsible for statements made by officers, the TWA was suspend- Obviously that is not the main 50n, because it is an established 15 that in the event that any of- © Or member of the CCL ates the policy or constitution the organization, there is ample vision in the constitution for 7) and just trial. fhe constitutional trial pro- ure was ignored by Conroy and #Guire in their investigations f€ and instead six locals and the ire membership of the TWA in jiada were suspended.” sked about the union’s plans, Tgan stated that the TWA would Ty on as it had done in the past. “A special district council naimo on February 7, where re cent developments will be care- fully reviewed and such action taken as may be necessary to serve the best interests of the membership,” he stated. IWA officers are preparing to make an appeal to the next CCL eonvention in September. A statement issued by the PWA District Council declared: “Executive Committee, interna- tional Woodworkers of America, District No. 1, deeply deplores the action of the Canadian Congress special commission in suspending our District from affiliation which is in violation of the Congress constitution. “The officers of IWA WDistrict Wo. 1 will immediately appeal this uncalled-for decision and make ourselves available to meet the CCL Executive and through the medium of discussion endeavor to strength- en sound trade union organization, maintain and increase war produc- tion and attempt to remove any misunderstanding based on incom- plete information that exists. “In the meantime, suspension of the IWA District will not effect our charter of funds and in no way interfere with its normal functions, as we are chartered and affiliated to the International Woodworkers of America with headquarters in Portland, Oregon, which in turn is affiliated with the CIO.” Labor Rejects Drastic Action Of CCL Board Another ship goes down the slipways as a worker stands watching result of his effort. Production of ships for war may be seriously held up by effect of the CCL. commission recommendations. Buek Replies To Congress Report TORONTO.—In a statement released to. the press Tuesday, Tim Buck, secretary of the Communist-Labor Total War Com- mittee, answered charges of the Conroy-McGuire .commission concerning communist control in shipyard unions and declared that the commission’s proposals were “against the interests of the war effort.” “JT am amazed,’ Buck stated, “to read in the press of the action of the CCL commission in Vancouver suspending the Boilermakers’ union and the IWA, particularly the charge that communists sought control of the Boilermakers. The effect this will have is to divert attention from the main task— which is to increase war produc- tion—to a campaign of redbaiting.” “The proposals of Conroy and MeGuire are against the inter- ests of the war effort, in my opinion. To propose that this great union be divided into a se- ries of small locals will weaken defensive powers of shipyard workers and will harm the bat- tle for production. Further action of the commission in suspending the IWA is a striking commentary on the attitude of Con- roy. and McGuire towards the prob- lem of organizing workers, espe- cially when the whole labor move- ment knows of the ITWA’s record in striving to increase production has fought most strenuously for continuous production and for bet- ter work in lumber camps. Proposals to lift the charter and split up the local union cannot but do immeasurable harm to cause of production and labor unity. It is a violation of the spirit and letter of the CCL resolution on labor unity and I am confident all affiliates of the Congress throughout the country will oppose this method of handling an inner union dispute. ‘While there may have been some hasty actions on the part of Wancouver shipyard workers, nothing arose which could not have been amicably ironed out. It seems to me that shop stew- ards have in their hands the in- terest of the union ard the good of their memberships and it should be they who must keep the union alive and production going so that making of ships will not be hindered by these unfortunate happenings.” ana to nrotect workers’ rights. The leadership against which these de- (Continued on Page 8) pS has been called in Na- cisions are aimed is that which See BUCK “Teachers, Labor Have Same Goal’ “Teachers and labor have much in common. Both are in- terested -in better living stan- dards,” A. T. Alsbury, presi- dent of B.C. Teachers’ Federa- tion, told Vancouver Tabor Council this week, reporting the campaign launched by the BCTF to bring pressure to bear on provincial authorities to improve educational oppor- tunities in rural districts and raise salaries. Some teachers in rural districts received as little as $800 a year, he stated, which had forced many experienced teachers out of the profession, and made it necessary. for less qualified persons to take their places, thus lowering educa- tional standards: A delegation will meet the cab- inet to ask that the provincial government assume its obligations to education, which, under the BNA Act, are declared a provin- cial rather than ga municipal re- sponsibility. The present system of municipal maintenance tends to make educational advantages de- penaent on wealth or poverty of the community ,he pointed out. “The solution of this problem must not be left until after the war,’ declared Alsbury. “In our war effort education has an im- portant part to play. Young peo- ple leaving school and entering the army must be provided with the right educational background if post-war democracy is to be ensured.” : A province-wide vote on the question of affiliation of the BCTE with organized labor is now being conducted. The closest contact be- tween labor councils and the Fed- eration Should be maintained, said Alsbury, so that organized labor can aid in the campaign. Staunch Labor Supporter Dies Abraham Zlotnik, wellknown for many years in the labor movement here, died at his home in Vancou- ver last Wednesday after a long ill- ness. He is survived by his wife, one daughter, Mrs. Dorothy Finn of Los Angeles, and two sons, Harold, now a member of the RCAF’ sta- tioned in Regina, and Sidney, also wellknown in Vancouver labor circles, who is serving with the Artillery Survey at Petewawa, Ont. The funeral took place Jan. 21 in the Jewish cemetery here. The whole labor movement will feel the loss of this extremely popular mem- ber of its ranks.