THE BC) LUMBER WORKER Published Every Second Monday by INTERNATIONAL WOODWORKERS OF AMERICA (CIO) DISTRICT COUNCIL NO. 1 Editor: JACK GREENALL Advertising Manager: MATT FEE Room 504 Holden Building—Phone PAcifie 4161—Vancouver, B.C. kes The deadline for stories for the coming issue is 4 pm. Thursday, August 28, 1945 Peace As we go to press, peace celebrations are commencing! Victory has been won! What a joy to millions of people throughout this world to know that fascism has finally been forced into, uncondi- tional surrender; that thousands who have given the best years of their young lives and who have survived, will now return; and that we can now, as a world, Jay down ARMS OF DESTRUCTION, and in their place take ‘up the MEANS OF CONSTRUCTION. Hundreds of our lumberworkers have given their lives for the destruction of fascism; men like Bill MacDonald, youthful and energetic Lake Cowichan organizer of Local 1- 80, who lies buried somewhere on the banks of the Ebro River in Spain; Albin Feusie, vice-president of Local 1-71 from the Queen Charlotte Islands, who died early in this war; George Henderson, sawmill organizer from Victoria who gave his life in Italy to free the world from fascism; and the young Ukrainian leader, Pete Krowchuk. We owe these valiant heroes who paid the supreme sacrifice that democracy might not perish from the earth, a promise THAT “HEY HAVE NOT DIED IN VAIN. We owe them a pledge that we will carry high the torch that they threw us with their last breath, We must not fail them! We will not fail them! As we celebrate V-J Day let us take this solemn oath: that we will continue, their struggle; that we will never rest until the cause for which they died has triumphed. V+J Day has come at last. Fascism has-been defeated, but the question on everybody's mind todayiis: what about the postwar world? Will it provide a just and lasting peace? Will it give the heroes of World War 2, and the mighty army of produc- tion workers, full employment and security; or will this nation wake up with the worst hangover in its history of ups and downs? Victory calls for speedy and decisive action to cope effectively with the many home economy problems.° Recon- _ yersion must be speeded up to absorb'the manpower that will suddenly be released. Progressive reduction in hours of work, government reconstruction programs designed to cushion the shock, must be initiated without delay, if we are not again to have too little, too late, as we did in the early stages of war. Continued international unity and cooperation alone can make for a just and lasting peace. Continued international cooperation, the complete radication of every last vestige of fascism, full prosecution of those responsible for the fascist atrocities and war crimes, a vast program for the industrial- ization and democratization of the colonial and more back- ward countries, alone can make possible the full democracy and the social security for which millions have died. During the last six years we have seen what TREMEN- DOUS RESOURCES, what GREAT ENERGY and what HIGH INTELLIGENCE could be used to destroy. As a fitting memorial to those who have paid the supreme sacrifice, LET THE LABOR MOVEMENT DEDICATE ITSELF ANEW to sce that those same resources; that same energy and that same high intelligence is fully utilized to construct a world in which peace, security and the four fredoms shall be established for all mankind, Unions’Demand Action On Reconversion Plan TORONTO.—Trade union representatives met in conference last week to discuss the whole question of cutbacks and displace- ment of labor to jobs at lower rates. Main purpose of the confer- ence was to discuss the serious situation in the aircraft industry, where thousands have been laid off and left jobless, or else offered work at considerably lower pay. At least 5,000 workers have been hit in Ontario so far in aircraft, and the conference helped acquaint union delegates with the aircraft plight, urging them to give moral and financial assistance in forcing government and management to adopt a more constructive viewpoint with regard to wages and living standards. x ° jonxeR Heading Out? ... By DON BARBOUR : I wish to take this opportunity to thank “Toredo” for giving such a nice verbal picture in the last issue of our paper of how a Union Hiring Hall should be conducted, in place of my usual en- deavour to give a brief report on the progress of that all-important question of union hiring. I trust “Toredo” received the impresions he wrote of by personal observations at 206 Holden Building; and when our hall gets out of that state of “if you can’t bring the mountain to Mohamet, then you must bring Mohamet to the moun- tain” (in this case Mohamet represents the vast majority of our membership, and the Union Hiring Hall the mountain) we will be well on the way to 100 percent union hiring. __, The strength of our organization today is such that every job listed with us could be immediately filled, but unless that strength is utilized the fate of union hiring is in jeopardy. Certainly no one but the membership can make union hiring the success it deserves to be, and if the membership is unwilling (that is all those members who have not yet put in an appearance at 206 Holden Building) to give full support to the principle our union has been trying to establish, then the objective set by our union some eighteen months ago is being unduly delayed: With the defeat ‘of Japan completed, the efforts of all lumber workers will now be directed to a program of reconstruction and construction. Because we have not always been at war with Japan, let us be determined that never again will our industrial output be used to assist an aggressor nation. Such knowledge can be imparted to the trade unions through the now constituted International Labor movement, and not left to individual ambassadors, as was done in the past. This is imperative and of just as much concern to the workers as to know what hours, wages and conditions are in any given operation which your Hiring Hall manager must be able to answer and that would be impossible were it not for the job stewards organization and agreements now established in the lumber industry. We now have an organization quite capable of preventing a return to past conditions, if each and every one strives to strengthen every branch of that organization of which union hiring is part. This will be the best guarantee of improving the lot of the lumber workers. POSTWAR PROJECTS CANADIANS THINK MOST IMPORTANT IN IMPROVING THE COUNTRY AND PROVIDING JOBS SLUM CLEARANCE AND | =e LOW-RENT wc 100 SE 63% RURAL euecrnricaion eS 37% ROADS ised i Wl 33% PARKS, PLAYGROUNDS, DI an COMMUNITY CENTRES Aum) ve A 25% REFORESTAFION A SOIL IMPROVEMENT G THAN 190% BECAUSE PEOPLE GAVE SORE THAN ONE ANSWER W. 1. B. CANADA Discrimination ‘Must End British Columbia, in comparison to some sections of the North American continent, has been comparatively free from race dis- crimination. Occasionally the public’s attention has been drawn to the fact that some worker has been denied a job, or the right to eat in public restaurants, or obtain room in a hotel, because of his or her color or nationality. _It is some time since the Crystal Pool drew the color line and denied negroes and other colored people the right to swim with white citizens. The latest case of rank discrimination that has aroused public indignation, is the recent case of the hotels in the }city of Vancouver, flatly refusing under any circumstances to house the negro cast of 120 artists who arrived in Vancouver to portray “Carmen Jones,” under the auspices of Hilker Attractions who sponsor world renowned artists and first class musical entertain - ment. According to press releases, representatives of the cast canvassed 52 hotels in the city of Vancouver for accommodations, and in every instance the hotel management refused such accomma dation. The larger hotels stated that they would not permit colored people to use their zacilities, and this applies also to the parthy government-owned hotel, Hotel Vancouver. In some instanves,