Bulletin Published by The B.C. District Council, International Woodworkers of America, Affiliated to Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO)

XI No. 12.

VANCOUVER, B.C‘, MONDAY, JUNE 14, 1943

Broadway > Printers Lt,

(293)

Labor Minister Announces

ajority Award Recommends

Union Agreement For Q.C.I.

Negotiations Under Way

With Timbe

r Preservers

Negotiations were opened last Monday betwen IWA Local

1-357 and the management of

Timber Preserves Limited in

New Westminster, The meeting was held in the company’s
offices at the foot of Meadow Street with Harold Pritchett,
president; Percy Smith, vice-president; Stuart Alsbury, second

vice-president, and: George Mit

resenting Local 1-357 and A. K.©

‘Leitch and Mr. N. K. Nickols. rep-
resentin gthe company. Discussion
* yesulted in the mutual agreement
between the two parties to extend
negotiations for a period of thirty,
days at which time negotiations on
the matter of an agreement would
be resumed. Minister of Labor

Pearson, has been notified of this
decision and in the meantime, the
company has agreed to meet the
union at any titme to discuss and
iron out difficulties or grievances
which may arise.

chell, recording secretary, rep-

Pres. Lowery
To Visit B.C.

Word was received last week
from International President
Worth Lowery that he will be ar-
riving in Vancouver for a short
visit on June 17. He will be meet-
ing with the officers of the Di
trict Council to discuss the prob-
lems confronting our organization
in British Columbia. All locals hav-
ing matters which they wish to
have taken up with President Low-
ery should make arrangements to
have them discussed during his
visit here.

Labor Relati
Presented In

(1) The establishment of a
the form of a Wagner Act.
2) ‘The establishment of a basic

"minimum wage rate of fifty cents
per hour on a national basis.

(3) A revision of the system
‘used in establishing the cost of liv-
‘ing index.
 @) A revesion of the system of
oning on a more equitable ba-

) Asked the assistance of the
nment in establishing Labor
yement Production Commit-
5 and of an Industry Council to
nate. the work of such com-

extracts from the submis-
quoted as follows:

national labor policy is
needed. Such a policy, in
of our union, should
sodied in a Labor Act — a
of rights which will be
app after victory has

ons Brief
Ottawa

OTTAWA, June 11.—An extensive brief presented here

today, on behalf of the International Woodworkers of Am-

erica, by Nigel Morgan, International Board Member of the
B.C. District Council of that union, called for:

Federal Labor Legislation in
mend the adoption of the follow-

ing principles:

(1) Collective bargaining through
unions of the workers’ own choice
and recognition by the employers
of such unions should be guaran-
teed and enforced by law. Collec-
tive bargaining and union recogni-
tion should not be matters sub-
ject to conciliation, but compulsory
by law. If the government investi-
gator reports effective refusal to
bargain collectively with the union
of thé workers’ own choice, the
government should be responsible
for conducting the prosecution of
such an employer and the penal-
ties provided should include also
compensation for these employees
whose interests have been injured
by this refusal.

(2) Unfair labor practices such
as the promotion of company
unions and discrimination against

a

(Continued on Page 6)

Implementation Will Stabilize Relations, Raise Morale, and

British Columbia was the winning of the majority award of
the Conciliation Board which recently heard evidence in. the
dispute between the Queen Charlotte Island logging operators

and IWA Local 1-71. The majority award, signed by Chair- |
| to the Industrial Conciliation and

man A. M. Harper and Arthur
tive, reads as follows:

Our conclusion is that the fears the employers entertain
of what would happen if they dealt with the officials of this
union are unfounded and we are of the opinion that the em-
ployers should enter into an agreement with the Local Union
1-71 International Woodworkers of America, for a period of
one year with the right of either party to abrogate such agree-
ment after the expiration of the said period of one year, on

thirty days’ notice.

Though the main issue between
the parties was union recognition,
other matters of minor importance
were dealt with in evidence, and
our conclusions as to these may
be briefly set forth:

J. Hours of Labor.—These are
not within the jurisdiction of the
Board.

2. Wages—These are also not

within the jurisdiction of the
Board.
8. Holidays—The holidays to be

allowed should be left to the par-
ties to determine.

4. Check-off.—In our opinion
the employers. should honor writ-
ten assignments of wages made by
any of the employees of which
due notice in writing is given, to
the extent that monies are owing
to the assignor at the time of the
receipt by the employer of notice
of such assignment.

6. Seniority and Leave of Ab-
sence—These may be linked to-
gether, For employees entering the
armed services and for those suf-
fering from illness or from injury,
leave should be given with the
right to retain senlority; and in the
event of shutdowns, all former em-
ployees who have filed applications
with the employer for re-employ-
ment and are available, should be
hired before new employees are
engaged.

(6. Strikes and Lockouts. — We
would recommend that during the
life of any agreement between the
parties, no strikes shall be caused
or sanctioned by the union and no
lock-outs-shall be caused by the
employers, untif every peaceful
method of settlement is exhausted.

7, Transportation. —This should
be left to agreement by the parties.

8. Safety Committee—Owing to
the hazardous nature of the work
and the high fatality rate in the
fogging industry, full scope should
be allowed for the functioning of
a safety committee. In case of dis-

Turner, the union’s representa-

agreements the decision of the
Workmen's Compensation Board |
should be final,

9. Paydays. — This is already
covered by legislation.

10. Sanitation—This. we under-
stand is fully provided for.

The majority of the Board in
the award state:

“In our opinion the good sense
and sound judgment of Canadian
workmen can be trusted to select
such representatives as are cap-
able of voicing and pressing their
legitimate claims for better work-
ing conditions, and it would be a
dangerous and unwise policy for
any outside body or person to en-
deavor to direct the selection of
their leaders or to attempt in any
way to pick or choose such répre-
sentatives of labor. Any attempt of
this kind would surely be resent-
ed, would lead to continual fric-
tion, and would hamper the promo-
tion of satisfactory relations be-
tween employer and employees.
The day of paternalism in the se-
lection of representatives of labor
is gone, and’ any employers or
others who seek to interfere with
or control in any way the repre-
sentatives of unions only invite
trouble.

‘The responsibility for the fulfill-
ment of the terms of any agree-
ment is in the members of Local
4-71, and it must be presumed the
members of this local would act
in good faith and ajsd guarantee
that their elected leaders would do
the same until the contrary is
shown.”

In an official statement on be-
[half of the union, District Presi-
dent Pritchett said:

“We commend the majority of
the board and the federal govern-
ment in establishing this justifi-
able decision, looking forward to
immediate implementation of the

(Continued on Page 4)

See ARBITRATION AWARD

i Increase War Production
The most outstanding and significant victory for the IWA in’ =

IWA Certified
13 Operations

The IWA, since the amendments

Arbitration Act became effective,
has been certified as the sole col-
lective bargaining agency in thir-
teen operations. These operations
are: Industrial Timber Mills,
Camp 3 and~6 and Youhou Saw-
mill; the Lake Logging Company
Booming Grounds and the Lake
Logging Log Lift; Hill Logging
‘The IWA to Date Has Been
Certified in

OPERATIONS

‘as Sole Collective
Bargaining Agency

Company, Honeymoon Bay Mill,
Meads Creek Camp, Paldi Saw-
mill, Wellburn ‘Timber, Shawnigan
Lake; the big VL. & M. Mill at
Chemainus and Tim¥er Preserves
in New Westminster.

The B.C, Lumber Worker will
carry in each issue a list of ad-
ditional operations where certifi-
cation has been made. Keep an eye
on this box and watch the in-
crease. With the extensive gains
being made in organization, this
increase should be very rapid.

Let's see your mill listed in the.
near future.

Burnaby Civic
Workers. Get
Closed Shop

BURNABY.—Burnaby civic
employees made history last
Monday night when they won
their demands for a closed shop.
The closed shop agreement,
signed by the municipal coun-
cil, is the first ever entered into

by a municipality in B.C.
The agreement provieds that in

future no one may be employed,
after a probationary period, un-
less he belongs to Municipal Em-
ployees’ Union, which is affiliated
with the Joint Council of. Public
Employees, B.C. Division.

Councillors gave unonimous ap-
proval, and the document was
signed by Reeve W. T. Willson and
Clerk C, B. Brown, with corporate
seal, and by William Black, presi-
dent of the Joint Council and the
president and secretary of the
local union of employees.