5 he Fumblers joPitulate je | aor — = ihe Week's Roundup The past week has witnessed the final S capitulation of the small anti-union group which sought to emasculate or destroy the ‘ie end came with almost dramatic suddenness... One day Boilermakers’ Union. —J:Auslane was threatening through the press to “take the 2g tion in the democratic way. Wicst the next day he was an- ‘seine that he had ‘washed hands” of the Boilermakers’ ‘irs, that the union stood ex- fed from the Canadian Gon- lis of Labor, and the matter sjj)i closed. He didn’t say so in sg) nany words, but we were left , the impression that as far 2—McAuslane—was concerned union could go to its own fen) Deratic “hell” without his fur- a administrative euidence. he air of improbability and vha radiction that clung to these 2} viduals throughout the course a3) He dispute was apparent to very last. On the day that tuslane declared the MBoiler- “Ingle On “Jbsenteeism sves off” and expel from the ranks of labor those Boiler- ikers’ leaders who had presumed to stand for democratic celled, CCL resident A. R. Mosher told the press that the union continued suspended as of Jan. 25, 1943, and that the case would be heard on Sept. 13, date of the annual CCL convention. They should haye got together. Meanwhile nothing further has been heard of those futile fum- blers who were perhaps too-chari- tably termed “plaintiffs” in the recent court dispute. Even Mc- Auslane has none too gently dis- posed of them with the remark that they “are out” of the union. He must have been reading the minds of the Bollermakers’ Union miembership. A new and refreshing angle on the much-abused subject of absenteeism eame this week from Henry J. Kaiser, ‘ Pacitic Coast shipbuilder wizard. Said *, Kaiser: “You would think, after reading continual press #ademnation of workers for absenteeism, that our ships, guns eid planes were somehow being built without human inter- iagnificent contribution. to the 4} effort, a fact which contro- fs all this wild talk of absen- am. Nowhere is this better "on than in our own ship- ‘J 1s, where production records ) being broken: daily. Of course S's absenteeism. But it will be solved by wild charges of worker’s irresponsibility. It 4 ld be much more to the point ve all got down to work to out what causes war work- to be absent and then set out solve the difficulty from ap? - Ssenteeism is admittedly a tious problem. It results from umber of causes — sickness to unsanitary working con- Sales jation. Such talk is absurd. The American worker is making ditions, the influx of women into industry with their special prob- lems, the abuse of overtime by the employer, transportation dif- ficulties, even the system of wage taxation which in many cases actually penalizes those working the sixth day. There are some who take ad- vantage of these facts to absent themselves. But generally, and in spite of the difficulties, the at- tendance record has been good in most industries. It can be greatly improved, however, if all factors are considered, and if the employers and labor, as Henry J. Kaiser suggests, set out to honestly determine what causes absenteeism and then set out to solve the difficulty from there. x NANA ee LN | —- * FoR OW!ls 47-475 VIWKYARAIRAVNY NY So - “Cowboys are funny that t way——rather ride than walk.” Shortage Of Housing Beeomes Barrier To aeiwxad indents BP poaogigaetion Kor War A STALEMATE exists in the Vancouver housing situation which has created a vicious circle that to many families looks more like a merry-go-round—and with no prospect of the musi¢ halting and the dizzy whirl coming to an end. Criminal overcrowding in the central areas of the city easts a threatening shadow of impending disaSter if no remedy is found. Statements of medical men that an epidemic of influ- enza similar to the one occurring during the last world war may be expected “within the next year or so” forecast a picture of widespread disease and death. peeecencs measures pro- posed by National Housing Registry, a subsidiary of War- time Prices and Trade Board, would no doubt alleviate the sit- uation for many temporary resi- dents now living under yery un- satisfacory conditions in rooms and billeted with relatives or friends. ‘ Mrs. Gordon Selman and her committee, many of whom are voluntary workers interested only in the problem of aiding the hundreds of distress cases who come to them for assistance, have done a wonderful job along these lines. But although placements in March totalled 99 family units and 540 single rooms (some of the latter only sleeping rooms, With no housekeeping facilities), still waiting are 99 applicants de- siring room and board, 340 want- ing housekeeping accommoda- tions for a couple with no chil- dren, or single man or woman, and, biggest problem of all, 1448 applications for small suites or housés for more permanent ac- commodation. This latter cate- gory comprises 610 couples, 218 applications for a family of three or more adults, 267 families with one child, 191 families with two children, and 162 families with from three to nine children, and represents altogether 5,083 per- sons in desperate need of a home. Ee addition to these who have applied through WNational Housing Registry, there are many who anxiously wateh the want- ads, to read this sort of thing: “3 room house, $20 month to party buying my car for $475.” ‘Four rooms, lower floor of house, $30. Must pay 6 months’ rent in advance.” “3 room suite, $40. Adults only. Must buy contents, $295 cash.” A letter to The Province asking help, said: “Landlords don’t want children, and they tell me it’s against the law to chloroform them.” The letter was signed Shipwrecked Sailor, and appar- ently he was more shipwrecked here in Vancouver than ever he * was on the high seas. And while an elderly widow who rigged up some kind of a questionable shelter that ad- mittedly didn’t even keep out the rain was provided with a tem- porary refuge in the home of a kindly neighbor when local dailies pictured her plight on their front pages, hundreds in the same boats don’t have the advantage of such generous advertisement of their predicament. Geen ban on sale of building materials for even a small, cheap home, coupled with eholder, smal] _ the visit of L.S. Davis who will only deal with the question of a compulsory registration of avail- able accommodation in private homes, would indicate-the govern- ment's plan to be a very near- sighted one. It’s hardly solving the problem to toss a soldier’s wife and two babies into the front bedroom of one of our city’s larger houses, to be per- haps treated coolly by the house- should compulsion be used to make this class of accom- modation available. The problem g0es much deeper. In pre-war years Dr. S. Stew- art Murray, city health officer, time and time again stressed the “appalling state” of housing con- ditions in Vancouver. A city of wooden houses, tending to fall quickly into a state of disrepair, By ELSIE - ANDERSON Vancouver did not cope with this disintegration, let alone step up house building to meet the needs of a rapidly-expanding popula- tion. A housing program in those days would have given work to thousands of unemployed, as well as providing necessary housing accommodation for our people, Dr. Murray’s comments on this question were many and pointed, as were the suggestions of work- ing people throughout the coun- try who realized, as our govern- ment seems to have failed to do, the urgent need of dealing with problems involving the well-being of our citizens. The steady rise in population figures is not paralleled by a corresponding increase in build- ing. Rather the reverse is true, for as Vancouver’s population rose, even in normal times, building figures dropped. Now, with- war- time expansion of our population due to the influx of industrial workers to man our defense work, the discrepancy is ridiculous in the extreme. : In 1926 2700 new dwellings Were erected. In 1934, the figure dropped to 200, and it was not until 1941, when National Hous- ing Administration permitted construction of houses through government long-term loans at low interest rates, that 2100 addi- tional homes were built. Curtailment of sale of building supplies in 1942, put a stop to this program which was being used by many in Vancouver, The limitations became more and more drastic, right down to the latest restriction, Jan. 12, 1943, reducing the - would-be home builder to expenditure of 3500 for labor and materials—which “isn’t the price of a good double §arage,” ‘according to Mayor Cornett’s comment. To thousands of Vancouverites the situation looks desperate. Many workers would like to build their own small homes, working at nights and on Sunday or on their day off. But present re- strictions allowing no more than $500 for a private dwelling, in- clusive of labor costs, has stalled any such individual enterprise. Obviously until this restriction i¢ -lifted—and so far there has been nothing to indicate that it might be lifted in the near future—it is impossible for the people to help themselves to any solution of the housing shortage. A new element was introduced into the picture when building men in the city alleged BC to be “the only province suffering re- striction of home building. They cite figures contrasting a de- crease of over two-thirds in home building permits in Vancouver this year with QOntario’s increase of $434,200 in residential construc- tion in the same period. if it is true that there is no restriction in any of the eastern provinces on home building and only the restriction of winter weather in the prairie provinces, then it would seem ironical, to say the least, that BC, mighty forest land of Canada, should be the one province where 2 man cannot build himself a small home. Wee Housing’s project- ed 300 houses near the air- port would, it is feared in many quarters, “look -like 3a row of packing cases.” Criticism has been directed at the North Shore project also, and apparently what is afoot is a move to pre- vent more of these “packing case” houses being built. Although these houses are not by any means ideal, there is no doubt at all that they are far better than anything existing at present for the relief of those people so desperately in need of a home. ImproVements could be made, though, if the government were influenced by public opin- ion, so that these houses would not be an eyesore and their erec- tion held up on this score. Priy- ate enterprise in the building trade has proven that houses need not be unattractive and need cost no more if a little thought is given to the planning. This is- sue should not be allowed to re- solve_itself into a fight between Wartime Housing, the only in- strument for any housing pro- gram at all in the city, and pri- vate concerns, be they realty firms or contractors, who feel that the government should per- mit private enterprise to go ahead with its construction pro- gram to build small houses. Providing lumber is available as stated by building men, it would seem that diverting some of BC’s lumber output for the people’s needs, either through permitting small homes to he erected by private individuals (a $2,500 limit would be more in line with reality) or through a government housing program or by opening up both roads, vou be both logical and sens- ible.