; October 10, 1942 THE B.C. LUMBHR WORKER Page Threo CL Convention Demands Government Change Policy; Pledges All-Out Effort > OTTAWA.—Puitting in a hard week’s work here, delegates of the Canadian Congress of Labor unions, representing. 160,000 workers of the steel, auto, shipbuilding, small arms, lumber, coal and metal mining, railroads and munitions industries hammered out a total-war program all along the line at last week’s annual convention. s The Congress called for speediest opening of the second front; enactment of full scale selective service for the armed forces ;establishment of a Ministry of Production; labor-management production committees in all war plants; all-out government co-operation with labor and manage- ment to accelerate war output; labor partnership and collective bargaining; implementation of the parliamentary committee’s recommendations for legality of the Communist: Party and release of interned anti-fascists, and action to curb fifth-columnists. Pointing the way for labor to strengthen the struggle for this total war program, the convention’ declared for the unity of action of all labor unions—Canadian Congress, Trades Congress and Catholic Syndicate—and advised all local unions and affiliates to take immediate measures to bring about unity in action on all war issues throughout the country. Tt is expected that this will result in the development of united work in all main cities and provinces, following as it does the unity resolu- tions of the Winnipeg Trades Congress convention. Delegates Stand to Honor Dieppe Heroes The convention opened with a solemn tribute to Canada’s heroes of Dieppe and the pledge that labor will work harder than ever to back up our men of the armed forces. To demonstrate this was no empty promise; the convention, while strongly condemning the policies of the government in the present grave steel and B.C. shipyard situations, emphasized the CCL's determination to solve all prob- lems by cooperation and negotiations. The delegates roundly cheered A: R. Mosher’s declaration that the CCL was for all-out production for the war, While demanding that wages and con- ditions in the shipyards and steel mills be such as to satisfy workers’ legitimate grievances and thus aid all-out produc- tion, the convention placed its full weight behind the no-strike stand advanced by Phil Murray, president of the CIO. Murray told the delegates: “The CIO has assured President Roose- velt that it has put the gun behind the door for the duration, There are too many important things to be done to in- dulge in any kind of strike during the war, particularly over jurisdictional mat- ters. . . . I call upon you to work and keep on working. Produce and keep on producing. Refrain from strikes calcu- lated to injure the production of your country.” Convention Very Critical Of Labor Policy While the convention referred back a resolution ‘demanding the removal of | Humphrey Mitchell as Minister of Labor | and passed a substitute calling for sharp condemnation of his policies, it was plain that there is a mounting tide of bitter criticism of government production pol- icfes. Steel and shipyards held the spot- light at two sessions, and there was un- animous agreement that steel basic wage rates must be increased, and that from Congress Resolution On . SECOND FRONT We, the 160,000 members of the Ca- nadian Congress of Labor in our third Annual Conyention are united in sup- port of the Churchill-Roosevelt-Molo- tov agreement; We recognize that Canada’s defense lies overseas; We have the greatest confidence in General McNaughton and our com- manders who say “we are going back”; We stand ready, each according to his capacity,, to make any sacrifice needed to carry this undertaking into action; We believe in the speediest opening of a second front; We urge it for the security of Can- ada; We urge it for the hastened triumph of democracy and for the freedom of | mankind the world over. ‘Elliott Little Given now on the government must cease im- posing plans dictatorially, as was the case in B.C. shipyards. E. E, Leary, president of the Vancou- ver Labor Council, declared that the 168- hour production week could be operated, but that the government had snarled the whole thing up by its arbitrary methods. President Mosher indicated that agree- ment would have to be reached to carry out the Royal Commission report on the B.C, shipyards, while continuing discus- sions on the workers’ proposals. Warm Reception Elliott M, Little, director of National Selective Service, was thunderously ap- plauded after delivering a realistic and blunt speech on the manpower problem. His demands that labor co operate fully in the solution of the many man- and ‘woman-power problems involved in rais- ing an additional 200,000 men and women for the armed forces and industry, plus another 100,000 men for the lumber in- dustry, were OK’d by the convention. At the same time the attitude of many delegates was: “Why can’t Premier King put Little in Humphrey Mitchell’s place? He'd do a good job there, for if labor pol- icies are not changed the Little manpower plans will meet terrific obstacles.” Delegates Pledge Production Record From every industry delegates told of how production was increasing. But they said the tempo was not fast enough, and pointed out that maximum production cannot be reached so long as the govern- ment takes no action to cooperate with the unions to raise sub-standard wage- rates, to get labor-management produc- tion committees set up and functioning in all war plants, to give labor represen- tation on war boards and put into effect a genuine system of collective bargaining. It was stressed that without these, while the unions will patiently battle against obstacles and fight for increased output unconditionally, the jobs of Mr. Little and the labor unions are made a hundred times more difficult than they should be in these war crisis days. Hard, blunt words were spoken about these questions by callous-handed ship- yard workers, by steel workers who sweat at open-hearth furnaces, by loggers and munition makers, echoing the total war feelings of the men and women who were back home. Prime Minister King may perhaps be delaying action until the ex- ecutives of the Canadian Congress and the Trades Congress take their recom- ia Congress Resolution Urging Ministry of Production WHEREAS the attack upon Dieppe is a signal that our armed forces are readying for the carrying out of the second front agreement which will call for maximum increase of Canadian production; and WHEREAS Canada is producing significant quantities of war weapons and supplies, yet total war production has not been reached and our war effort is suffering from material shortages, lack of co-ordination and maximum planning which is exemplified in unnecessary lay-offs, idle machines, slow production and other evils; and WHEREAS today practically all government planning and directing of our war production is done by separate departments and boards which are operated under “business-as-usual” methods; and WHEREAS the maximum expansion and conversion of our basic war in- dustries and plants has been kept back by the pressure of powerful corpora- tions which insist upon placing their post-war competitive and monopoly po- sitions ahead of the need of total war for our national survival: THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that this Convention of the Canadian Congress of Labor call upon the Dominion Government to immediately estab- lish a Ministry of Production which will function as the supreme planning, co-ordinating and executive high command of the nation’s battle of production, charged with the over-riding task of taking all necessary measures to obtain maximum increase in the production of steel, coal, ores, oil, synthetic rubber, aluminum, lumber and other raw materials and the consequent maximum in- creases in the production of planes, tanks, ships, munitions and small arms ‘of which Canada is capable; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this Convention call upon the Gov- ernment to include as members of such a Ministry of Production outstand- ‘ing representatives of industrial management, labor and government, and with equal representation from labor and management, and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this Convention call upon the Gov- ernment to take immediate measures to include on all industrial War Boards outstanding representatives of organized labor; and : BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this Ministry of Production should have the power vested in them by Government that makes it mandatory on every war industry to establish labor-management production committees giving full recognition to organized labor, and BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED that this Convention calls upof all af- filiated unions and councils to carry forward a campaign in the union and to the public with the object of organizing maximum influence upon’ the Government to implement these overdue measures which will strengthen our national war effort and thus hasten the end of Hitler. mendations to him, He would be well advised, according to all competent ob- servers at the CCL convention, to take emergency action quickly to implement some of the main proposals made by labor at Ottawa last week, and at Winnipeg last month. This would aid our war ef- fort considerably. Canadian labor understands that the demand for the second front places heavier responsibilities upon all our peo- ple, for it will mean heavy battles and heavy sacrifices, greater demands upon our factories, shipyards and plants. Labor's program, enunciated at Ottawa by the CCL, outlines labor's duties and responsibilities in this regard and will un- doubtedly result in a hastening of the campaign for the second front and all- out cooperation and output in every in- dustry and city, Convention United For Victory The spirit of unity at the convention, with the delegates of all, and no partic- ular political affiliation, subordinating everything to the central question of strengthening labor's role in the national war effort, will undoubtedly bring great benefits, Canadian labor at Ottawa, in pledging firm solidarity of its ranks and calling for unity on the second front, and for unity of the United Nations, and in urg- ing the Indian people to recognize the Hitler-Tokio axis as their hated enemy, demonstrated that it is keenly aware of, and is practicing the maxim: Everything for the war, for the second front, democ- racy and victory. Congress Resolution Urging NATIONAL UNITY WHEREAS, total war and national unity demand that all Canadians, of all parties, unions, classes and creeds without exception, who desire the de- feat of the Axis powers, be united and organized“for maximum action to bring about victory in this war; and WHEREAS, the Parliamentary Com- ntittee on the Defense of Canada Reg- ulations brought down a majority report which was supported by the public and the press of the country; THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that this convention of the Canadian Congress of Labor make strong rep- resentations to the Government that the Cabinet carry through the pro- posals of the Parliamentary Commit- tee in full and lift the ban on the Communist Party of Canada and all other antifascist organizations; and release from internment all interned anti-fascists so that national unity and all-out war can be developed for victory.