Congratulations to the Kel- ‘Owna members of the IWA, ‘Local 1-423 in their conduct of the strike and their ex- eelient bulletins in which they name 13 seabs, to wit, Gordon pot, Vie Gregory, Dan Hill, ul ‘Thompson, ©. Snod- Sig Anderson, John Nib- doe Tschedo, Ray Gaw- Fred Hitch, Charles Howard Wilson, and WAY POINTS Eight operators up with the IWA d 1946 agreement in caught an “independ- or trying to load in railroad yards fter some commotion phe intervention of N EASILY SEE THAT TAKING EVERYTHING 2 # STRIKE BEAT VETERANS’ CHANCE Victoria: Veteran committee set up to deal with lumber clearance for veterans. Our shore picket watching all movement of logs. Veterans have arranged monster par- ade in support of IWA, Wed- nesday night. Co-ordinating committee of all unions work- ing on our behalf and public opinion for our side is over- whelming, Six companies op- erating under new agreement and certification of three. op- erations is being made, Prince George: Arrange ‘with railroad union head office to pre- vent hauling of hot lumber from this area. Nelson: All operations closed in this district. R. A. Patterson paid fine of $600 imposed by Regional War Labor Board for paying less than the wage scale. Operators trying to get scabs to resume operations but not having much success, AN quiet on picket lines. eee Mission City: Nineteen opera- tions signed 1946 agreement to date and five more pending. Sit- BCLUUMBER WORK Page Three DEN “a = PRESI A By HAROLD PRITCHETT Officers and members of the International Woodworkers of America, greeted with high hopes the call from Chief Justice Gor-. don Sloan, once again to resume negotiations with the employers, in an effort to reach an agree- ment and early of the present dispute, CoS aes However, as was evident im- “mediately to both Commissioner Sloan and union representatives, employer representatives were not yet ready to offer concrete proposals as a basis for set- tiement. feds Sah poe HOURS DISCUSSED Commissioner Sloan in his ca- pacity as mediator, attempted to explore every possibility for settlement, and finally suggest- ed that hours of work be dis- cussed with a view to ironing out at’ least one of the remain- ing differences. mile The union, willing and anxious to cooperate with the Commis- sioner, agreed to a compromise on hours allowing for a gradu- al reduction in the working week, but again the employers were adamant, and even went further in their attempt to di- vide and rule the workers in the industry, by proposing that sawmill workers should work a longer work week throughout the year than the workers in the logging camps. ieee wees POSITION UNTENABLE This position of course to workers in the industry would be untenable to say the least. Every worker is entitled to more leisure time to spend with his family and to follow tha educational or cultural pursuits of his or her own choice, and there is no conerete reason why workers in the city should be burdened with longer hours than the brothers and sisters working in the woods. Again this position is unfair for. in effect, they say, loggers will be allowed to earn time and a half for overtime after 40 hours in the woods and saw- mill workers will be paid straight time for 44 hours. ce eee STRIKE UNITY Our strike has been one of the most united demonstrations that has ever taken place in the’ “lumbering industry, or for that matter in any industry in Can- ada. Ce a We are united in one common aim, to raise the standards of -living for loggers, sawmill work- ers, workers in box factories and all other phases of the industry. The thin edge of the wedge can not be used this time, with employers pitting one group of workers against another to win their points. ets Ce ‘We are on the picket lines imited. We can stay on the Operators Sabotage 1 Strike Settlement Since negotiations started between the IWA and the operators before Mr. Justice Gordon Sloan May 20 the mass of press re~ ports have tended to be confusing for the simple reason that the press was barred from the proceedings which were held in camera. Your negotiating committee, however, had a trained stenographer at all meetings with the commissioner. This report, then, is designed to clear up certain confusions and to keep the record straight for the members and for all those people on our side. In this column you will see arranged in chart form a digest of the operators’ proposals and the union’s counter proposals. EMPLOYERS’ PROPOSALS WAGES HOURS UN. SECURITY (1) 5 cents 44 Arbitrate (2) 10% Woods 48-40 for six months each, 4 hours time & half. Sawmills} No 44. (3) 12% cents 44 No IWA PROPOSALS (1) 25 cents 40 Union security. (2) 18 cents 40 Arbitrate (3) 18 cents|44-42-40 year spread. | Arbitrate In the strike bulletin, No. 3, which is now in your hands we said: “Despite sincere efforts on the part of the TWA nego- tiating committee to effect a settlement of the strike before Mr. Sloan, it can be said without equivocation that the lack of co-operation of the lumber operators’ representatives in these negotiations CAN ONLY BE INTERPRETED AS DE- SIGNED TO SABOTAGE THE WHOLE PROCEEDINGGS.” An examination of the foregoing table will show conclusively that the operators have not moved in any respect beyond the proposals they first advanced, which have been the direct cause of the strike. Cynical Proposal Their three proposals have been carefully designed to pre- clude any possibility of acceptance on the part of tho I.W.A. Proposal No. 1 in its offer of a five-cent increase is a cynical disregard not only of the demands of your union, but of public welfare and of the economy of our country. Their gratuitous offer of a 44-hour week established by law in B.C. In proposal No, 1 possible proposals on wages and hours, they gesting arbitration of union- security. Proposal No. 2 would seem at first glance to be an attempt at an honest settlement. On examination, however, it readily will be apparent that the operators purposefully request the union to drop union security. In addition, their offer of a 10 percent increase across the board is designed to grant a large increase among higher paid workers and an insignificant boost for the most needy lower paid workers. For instance, a man earning $6 a day would, under this pro- posal, receive a 60-cent increase, whereas a man earning $12 a day would receive a $1.20 boost. In neither case would the increase approximate the union’s basic demand for a $2 increase across the board, In the employer's proposal No. 2 a complicated formula for hours is advanced. This proposal would set up different scales between woods and the sawmills, and is an attempt to discriminate within the same industry. Loggers would work 48 hours for the first six months with four hours at time-and-one- half and forty hours for the last six months. Sawmills would operate on a 44-hour weel. Employers’ proposal No. 3 is simply ac way of re- stating proposals No. 1 and No. 2. Refused To Move € It will be apparent to every striker and to the public in gen- eral that the attitude of the operators before Mr. Sloan has been one of adamant refusal to move from their position and little or no desire to consider counter proposals by your negotiating committee. ‘What were our proposals? In the foregoing chart, the I.W.A.’s proposal No, 1 lists the basic demands for which 37,000 woodworkers are on strike. The union’s proposal No, 2 is a recognition on the part of the union of the imperative necessity of an early settlement. The union was prepared to conduct an immediate referendum on these proposals and if accepted (as it is believed they would have been) the logging industry today would have been operating at full capacity. The operators, however, flatly rejected this proposal. Your negotiating committee in advancing proposal No. 3 made a further effort towards settlement. On the hours question they proposed 44-hour week for the first four monthg. 42-hour week for the second four a jeer) od ao nau re ‘ has already been by advancing im- feel safe in sug- .