March 19, 1941 THE B.CLUMBER WORKER Page Three Crofton Boom-Crew Discuss Adjustments To Agreement CROFTON, March 10. — The regular meeting of the Crofton Sub-Local was held here on February 28 with 100 per cent attendance. International Executive Board Member, Nigel Morgan, attended and gave a short talk on the general progress of our Union, A number of outstanding ques- tions were raised and placed before the meeting for consideration, The matter of joint negotiations with the Rounds Sub-local toward a renewal of our pre- sent contract was taken up and will be dealt with again at the next meeting, A letter outlining the case of Brother Mezger was read, and a collection of $8.00 was taken up for the Local 1-118's De- fense Fund. It was decided to send a letter to the Federal Minister of Justice protesting the ban on the “Canadian Tribune” and demanding that this journal of demo- cratic opinion be permitted to continue publication, An attractive credential holder, bear- ing the name of our Union and the Hotel West, which was put out through the courtesy of-Mr, Fred. Marchese, was pre- sented to our delegates by Brother Mor- gan, At the present time, Crofton Export is working at capacity, with an enlarged crew. The loading works at the Lake are working two shifts and from three to five trains are brought down each day. Concerning accidents here, there have been none of a serious nature in the past year. Danger spots are attended to when- ever they present themselves and there is no doubt that this goes a long way in making for safety. The Osborn Bay wharf, formerly used by the Hillcrest Lumber Co, as a lumber wharf, has been closed down for a month, It is understood that the lumber from this mill is now being shipped through Che- mainus, COWICHAN AUX. TO AID B.CLW. LAKE COWICHAN.—A very successful meeting of I:W.A. Ladies’ Auxiliary, Local 80, was held at the home of Sister Reridle on March 6th. Secretary Greenwell, of Local 1-80, L.W.A. installed the follow- ing officers for the ensuing year. President—Sister Godfrey; Vice-Presi- dent—Sister Wklund; Recording Secre- tary—Sister Beline; Financial Secretary —Sister Enlund; Trustees—Sisters Olson, Brown and Edwards. Warden—Sister Beech; Conductor—Sister Friberg. After the new officers had taken over their duties, two new members, Sisters Lewis and Robertson, were welcomed and initiated. It was arranged to hold another social and dance on March 22 in the Union Hall, the proceeds from which will be sent to the “B.C, Lumber Worker.” On behalf of the members, Sister God- frey presented Sisters Beech and Brown with a small gift in appreciation of their past services and faithfulness. ‘The next meeting will take the form of @ social afternoon when the members will visit Sister Nevo on March 20th. Refreshments were served at the close of the meeting, and a very pretty birth- day cake was shared with Sister Beline, in honor of her birthday. “Press Committee.” Join the IWA and Help Boost Our Pay a Buck a Day! Core TCC CrceCcercecceecy ALL WORK GUARANTEED 4 SERVICE JEWELERS Dealers in Diamonds Watches and Jewelry WATCH AND JEWELRY REPAIRING ZLOTNIK, Manager Z ST. VAN,, B.C. 5 Seen neeneenenew ential waneesseenescs: The few gyppos that logged here in the past year are through, and have moved to other claims. —Press Agent. If discussion in the bunkhouses and on the boats are any indication, the re- cent People’s Convention in Britain has aroused considerable interest among loggers, miners and fishermen. They are eager to know the full story of the con- vention and what has happened since, and while, for reasons of space, a full report cannot be given in this column, here is the resolution adopted at the first full meeting of the national com- mittee of the People's Convention last month. The resolution states: “This meeting calls on all democratic and progressive organizations and on the whole mass of the people to rally to the defense of their rights and in- terests in the face of many direct and indirect threats to which they are ex- posed at present, The reactionary prop- erty interests, instead of devoting them- selves to redressing the grievances ex- posed by the People’s Convention and admitted on all sides as real and seri- ous, are now openly developing their plans to destroy democratic and trade union rights, break up the working class movement, cut down the living, health and cultural standards, and establish a fascist type of social, eco- nomic and political organization, in par- ticular in the following respects: Industrial Conscription “The introduction of industrial serfdom for industrial workers for the benefit of private employers who retain the indus- tries in their own hands and operate them not in the interests of the people but for their own profit and enrichment; large scale absorption of women in industry on the basis of agreements which in practice provide no real safeguard for the stan- dards of either men in industry or women entering it; the sending into the armed forces of skilled workers who are urg- ently needed for the efficient operation of industry; grave threats to trade union standards inyolved in all those measures. “2. The development of economic and financial policies which increase the power of large scale monopoly combines at the expense of small producers and traders; this coupled with a food policy which enables the rich to consume ample supplies of unrationed food and compels ‘the poor to suffer unnecessary hardships for the enrichment of the food profiteers. “3..'The attack on the freedom of ex- pression, particularly on the press, as ex- emplified by the suppression of the Daily Worker, suppression which both in itself and in the manner in which it was car- ried out represents a long stride on the way toward fascism and a ‘co-ordinated’ government press, “4. The ripening proposals for prolong- ation of the spurious national unity of the capitalists and ‘socialists’ after the war, in which the Labor Party leaders will con- tinue their inglorious. role of buttressing the capitalist system against the desires of the rank and file; together with the vague and empty promises of a ‘new order’ on the basis of their spurious unity.” Plans for extending and building the People’s Convention movement include the calling of 12 regional conferences cov- ering every area of Britain, Each of these regional conferences, it is proposed, will elect local committees to direct ‘cam- Hotel East “Make It Home” 445 GORE AVENUE Vancouver, B.C. SEy. 0308 NEWS and VIEWS By EVAN LANE WOODWORKERS ‘Bushelling Cuts Pay’ By ELMER HOLM When the peak of logging began to decline, the timber barons began to look for a way to cut production costs. The piece-rate system was This completes the news for this time. | borrowed from the growing industry of the East and introduced to the timber industry. paigns based on the 8-point program adopted by the People’s Convention. Thousands Starve in Spain From Spain, by way of Lisbon, come stories telling of the suffering of the Spanish people. Thousands sleep on the streets in Madrid, in the sewers or amid the ruins of what were once their homes. Their plight has been rendered even worse by the recent bitterly cold weather which has taken the lives of many women and children. Tuberculosis is in- creasing at such an alarming rate that the Franco government has been forced to appropriate the. equivalent of $36,000,- 000 for an anti-tuberculosis campaign. While these conditions prevail, new taxes are adding to the hardships of the poverty-stricken people. The agricultural tax has been increased from 25 to 50 per- cent, the sales tax from 11 to 25 percent. Additional consumers’ taxes have been placed on coal, electricity, shoes, pastries, knitted goods and canned goods. Inflation Faces Sweden With its foreign trade severely cur- tailed as a result of the war and indirect taxation already at a maximum level, Sweden is now facing the prospect of in- flation. Imports in 1940 fell 20 percent, exports 30 percent, while the turnover in foreign trade for the year showed a re- duction of 25 percent. ‘The output of war industry has increased, but paper, cellu- lose and cement industries are at a stand- still. Swedish economy is approaching the level of 1932-33—the most difficult years of the world economic crisis—with all the consequences, unemployment, rapid de- cline in living standards of the people, sharpening of social contradictions. Unemployment is now officially esti- mated at 100,000, and this figure does not include those not registered at labor ex- changes. In the building trades alone 60 percent of all workers are without work. Taxation, which has trebled during the past five years, has now reached its limit, and the gap between the lowered living standards of the people and the increased incomes of the wealthy is widening. From 1935 to 1940 the cost of food stuffs, calculated on the basis of a working class family's budget, in- creased 700 kroner, but in the same pe! iod nominal wages increased only 130 kroner. At the end of last year the Swedish Trade Union Federation and the Em- Ployers’ Association signed an agreement giving skilled workers a wage increase of 107 kroners for six months, although official figures of the home ministry show that in 1940 the cost of foodstuffs for a worker’s family over a six months period inereased by 522 kroner over 1939. This agreement is being opposed by the rank and file of many unions, particularly the metal workers, miners and building trades. eee means aes neere eo] JOHN STANTON Barrister, Solicitor, Notary 503 Holden Building 16 East Hastings St. MArine 5746 SEY: 0988 CITY THE LOGGE RADIO CARS ALWAYS AT YOUR SERVICE . With much ado about how democratic the plece system was the loggers proceed- ed to institute piece work that was fin- ally to drive wages to a level of unknown lows. Slogans such as “each to his abil- ity and work so shall he be paid,” were mouthed by employers throughout the woods. ‘The timber workers soon found out that under this method that they were being docked for rotten and cull timber that formerly they had been paid for under day work. Thus. the risk of rotten and cull timber has been passed on to the worker, ‘BIRTH OF THE GYPPO.” Timber workers began’ to call piece work, gyp or gyp work and a man who did piece work a “gyppo”—this being the birth of the gyppo and the GYPPO SYS- TEM. This method of passing the risk to the worker in itself CONDEMNS the gyppo or piece work system, The timber barons did not stop at this for they soon instituted the high-ball or speed-up. This being done by cutting the piece-rate, thus forcing the worker to work longer hours and at a faster pace than before to make the same wages. Men broken in health and old before their time are witness enough to condemn the GYPPO or PIECE WORK SYSTEM! ANSWER WITH ORGANIZATION. Timber workers in trying to combat this vicious system took to organization, but here too the timber barons made the piece system a weapon to counteract it. This they did by giving select stands of timber to skilled workers and pointed to them as to what could be had by piece- work, thereby dividing and splitting the workers and nullifying organization. Broken strikes, blacklisted workers, hunger and privation are mute testimony to the injustice of the gyppo or piece system, Years of struggle and the advent of the C.I.O. in the timber industry is bring- ing the dawn of a new day that will put an end to the gyppo system. The young organization is beginning to mature, gain- ing strength and stature so that in the near future gyppo will be a thing of the past. TO ABOLISH SYSTEM. Minnesota timber is getting poorer from year to year. It won't be long until woods work here will be a brush-cutting job. And the only way that the wages of 80 percent of the timber workers can be raised is to abolish the piece-rate |.sweat-shop system. This must be an immediate objective of the coming contract negotiations—to abolish piece work and to establish an adequate monthly wage for all classifica- tions of workers, An end to millionaires’ and luxuries! . . labor! profits . A decent life for Office & Stand: 404 COLUMBIA AVE. TAXI RS’ FRIEND Trin. 1000