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B. C. maser WORKER

Comment .

EDITORIALS

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This Costs Money |

Dalskog’s casual brushing off of the board rate
question during this year’s negotiations and con-
ciliation Board hearing, is today taking dollars
and cents from the pockets of British Columbia
loggers.

Contrasted with this complete disregard for
the men whom Dalskog and Pritchett claimed to

Was This Leadership?

Former leaders of District Council No. 1, per-
sonified by Harold Pritchett and Ernie Dalskog,
are very fond of beating their rapidly deflating
breasts and attempting to assume all credit for
building the IWA in this province.

They blandly ignore the fact that it is the
interest, co-operation, and solidarity of the rank
and file membership which makes a union.

Here Is a Change

It has been said before but it cannot be
peated too often or with too much emphasi
The B.C. Lumber Worker is your paper,
paper of IWA members,

To anyone not familiar with IWA developy
in British Columbia, and particularly recent
velopments, this might sound like a

represent is the prompt driving action of top
IWA officers to get back for B.C. loggers the wage
Increases they were to have gained under the

1948 agreement.

The complete failure of Dalskog-Pritchett and
Co. to protect the interests and welfare of B,C,
loggers will go into the resord as a lasting black

’ mark against their rotten leadership. Seldom in
the history of Canadian labor has there hesn
such a clearly documented case of complete dig-

regard for the members of
families.

International President Jim Fadling, in a pres:
entation to the British Columbia Labor Relations
Board, placed emphasis on the situation which
loggers face—increased board in the camps and
higher living costs for their families at home.

As a result of the Dalskog-Pritchett failure to
protect loggers’ interests these workers are car-

rying a double burden.

The logger who has to pay a board bill knows
the score. It is written right in his pocketbook.

Leadership must be responsible, and that was
what the IWA was lacking in 1946 when the vital
and necessary strike was bungled by the tactics

pursued by Pritchett and Co.

a union and their

When we went on strike we had 18,000 mem-
bers out of a potential 35,000. Inside two weeks
we had gained another 10,000 members, and the
employers were forced to offer a 15-cent across
the board pay boost, the revocable checkoff and
the 44-hour week.

The sensible thing to do was to recommend

acceptance and consolidate the union.

ship.

Pritchett and his cohorts not only rejected this’
offer without consulting the membership, but
continued the strike for 22 days without one
additional concession being granted. This in itself
was a first class indictment of their inept leader-

The gains this year, such as they were, could
have been obtained in straight negotiation in less
time than it takes to say “graveyard scene.”

Had our former leaders tried to make a laugh-
ing stock of the IWA, they could not have suc-
ceeded better.

to the loggers and
ince.

minded group.

ship.

statement, but there is nothing aves

Too long they have paid for a paper which
served the peculiar interests of a small mii

For too long the columns of the paper they
financed have been closed to all but those
formed a docile following of a select, polit

That condition no longer applies. When the
B.C. Lumberworker came off the presses lagt
week it came into its own. The columns of thig
paper are open to the IWA membership. It is the
intention of District 1 Council to have these col-
umns used solely in the interests of the member.

At the same time there is-no intention to
the columns become a medium for the circulatioi
of propaganda by any particular group. Thidg
week to the desk of the B.C. Lumberworker came
a letter from one who signed himself W. H. Mc-
Connell of Quatsino, who by his own admission
has deserted the IWA for the phoney “WIUC”.
The columns of this paper are not open to those
who have turned traitor to their union.

@ a
sawmill workers of this proy-

IWA cash and bonds shimmies a

tells us, in effect, “I haven't got it:

never had it.” . . . Harvey doesn’t

by Weedy Weoedpecker

OUR HARVEY’S LAME EXCUSES about the disposal of $23,000
little under the microscope. Harvey

I had it but I gave it back: I've
say so, but I'll make a bold guess

as to whom he considered the “owners” of our hard collected cash.

THE PARTY BOYS had a deep
disappointment at New Westmin-
ster Sunday night, First they had
a halt all ready for a meeting to
be composed of those who walked
out of Local 1-357; second they
-had-a photographer waiting at the
door of the Legion Hall to take a
picture of the walkout.

The party boys had stroked
their foreheads for a long time
working it out — but there just
wasn’t any walkout. The photo-
grapher didn’t think the little
handful of party boys who left
were worth photographing. The
hall they had rented was empty
enough to echo with the voices of
a few unhappy people,

et

P.S. (TO ABOVE)—The boys in
the Legion Hall had a good meet-
ing. For one thing they got a copy
of a full financial statement out-
lining the local’s position. That’s
the kind of document Pritchett and
Dalskog don’t hand around.

Wi”.
BC. Luwpes

Representing the Organized Loggers and Mill Workers af B.C.

BROTHER JOHN BUSCH, or-
ganizer for 1-217 comes up with a
good story. He hears that all the
East Indian brothers at. North
Shore Lumber were given WIUC
buttons and receipts for initiation,
plus one month’s dues without any
money being paid.

This was pressed on these bro-
thers whether they wanted them
or not. Commented one of the men
to whom WIUC was trying to play
Santa Claus: “If they think they're
going to get money for this they’re
crazy.”

et

Commented Brothet Busch:
“Brother you're right. They are.”

ea 8

A, A. MeDOUGALL, staunch
IWA member at Master Built
Doors won loud cheers from his
fellow workers with a smart bul-
letin board piece. At the end of
the message Brother McDougall
had this to say: “I think 15 cents
to the IWA international is better
value than LPP propaganda we
pay 20 cents for.” You're right,
Brother McDougall.

PUBLISHED EVERY MONDAY BY

INTERNATIONAL WOODWORKERS OF AMERICA (CIO)
B.C. DISTRICT COUNCIL No. 1.

PROVISIONAL OFFICERS

J. S. Alsbury,, President

Lloyd Whalen, 1st Vice-President
J. Squires, 2nd Vice-President
G. McEntee, 3rd Vice-President

M. Sckora, Financial Secretary
'W. S. Lynch, N. Shaw, J. S. Alsbury,
Trustees,

Subscription rates, $1.00 per year.
20,000 copies printed this issue.
‘Advertising rates on application,

ROOM 218, LEE BUILDING

FAirmont 9024

VANCOUVER, B.C.

thorized Second Class Mail. Post Office Dept. Ottawa.
poe OS Dee Oe Sn CRM, Delober aE:

LOCAL 1-217, FURNITURE
WORKERS, at Vancouver Casket
and Jones Tent and Awning say it
is nice to see some of the IWA
officers around once in a_ while.
They are not used to it. Workers
at both plants found they were in
a fine mixup as far as agreements
were concerned until the ex-IWA
people beat ite ,

The new IWA officers are doing
a job to straighten it out and get
more dollars and cents for these
members. One 1-217 member had
a pointed question: “Who is the
bosses’ stooge, the people who
leave us without’ an agreement or
the people who get us an agree-
ment?”

ee 8

IT’S GOOD NEWS that Charles
“Chuck”. Thomas, prominent
Prince George trade unionist, has
applied for leave to take a tem-
porary position on the IWA staff
as an organizer. The boys will
welcome “Chuck”,

Congress Lifts
Mine- Mill Ban

After three months’ suspension,
the International Union of Mine,
Mill and Smelter Workers’ (CIO)
was this week re-affiliated with the
Canadian Congress of Labor.

The union was suspended in
August after its epee, had carried
an attack on CCL president A. R.
Mosher, during the railway wages
negotiations.

At the recent CCL convention,
Mine, Mill was refused re-admis-
sion until full and sufficient apolo-
gies had been made, The incoming
executive now considers that this
has been done.

Mine, Mill represents 22,000
workers in Canada, but their B.C.
regional director, Harvey Murphy,
is still under a personal two-year
suspension imposed last April.

Democracy?

“It angers most of us to think
that 23,000 LPP members should
decide what is right for a million
organized workers, and then try
to put it over by hook or by crook.”
—Tom Alsbury, vice-president,
Vancouver Trades and Labor
Council (AFL), on CCL radio Ses-

Laughs for Free
THE EDITOR:

From where I sit everythin;
looks pretty good for the TWA a1
I am glad to see our District is
again in the groove publishing our
paper, The B.C. Lumber Worker
that Harold and the boys tried to
steal and fool the people.

I got an October 27 issue of the
phoney lumber worker and there
are sure some laughs in it:

1. Pritchett elected “National”
President. (From what I hear most
of the people were party members
from Vancouver that attended the
WIUC “convention”. To get the
title they merely said, “our juris-
diction is nation-wide.” Some
laugh, but I don’t know why they
didn’t extend their jurisdiction
world-wide, then Harold would
have had proper expansion for his
ego. Did you notice too that real
democarcy prevalless all officers
were elected by acclamation with-
out referendum?)

2. Headline says “Attempt to
Steal ‘Green Gold’.”

Then the article said, although
the WIU cannot use Green Gold,
the IWA would not be allowed the
time either.

I hope I’m not going daffy, Mr.
Editor, but I am positive I heard

Green Gold last Thursday, the
28th, one day after the phoney
B.C. Lumber Worker came off the

press. How come?

_ The article also calls everybody
in B.C. a liar by saying “The only
information that can be relied on
is that supplied through official
union channels, through the union
broadcasts, an through the B.C.
panies Werker.” Isn’t that just
ine?

8. Then turn the page to Edi-
torials, One reprinted from the
People’s World”, a known Commie
sheet. It said at Tacoma in 1937
“words were penned with care by
men who had put off their caulked
boots to do a job for labor.” But
that couldn’t have been Harold be-
cause he never wore a pair of
caulked shoes. And I’m sure from
where he was he didn’t have any
sunburnt fists either. It couldn't
have been Dalskog because he
ere

laybe Nigel Morgan had slipped
out of his office in Victoria at that
time and brought a pair of caulked
shoes and came back and hung
them on the wall. I know he never

— THE MAIL BAG —

earned his living wearing caulked
shoes.

4, Then I saw an attack on
Carl Winn, International Seere-
tary-Treasurer. I'll believe this —
when I see it in the convention
proceedings, but what strikes mo
funny is I wonder if the editor of
the phoney Lumber Worker knows
the size of Winn.

The biggest laugh of all is
the headline which says “Conven-
tion slashes per capita charges”
then goes ahead to report that the
-WIU per capita is Foing to be
$1.00 per man. The old council still
pays 60c and will not be changed
without a true referendum. But I
suppoge this was accepted like the
officers were elected, unanimously
and without referendum,

At the close of the article it
says, “Are there any workers in
your operation who have not re-
voked: their old check-off yet?”
Such a question. Yes, Harold, the
woods are full of them,

Yours, a
I’m Stickin’ With the Union. —

What About Board?

THE EDITOR:

Last April, our board rates
were raised from $1.50 to $2.00,
without any effective protest from
our leaders at that time,

Last month we got the same
treatment—another: four-bit raise,
wiping out the pay increases of a
lot of us.

I hope now that we will have
some “get tough” action by ;
IWA to make sure the contracts
are amended to include board ral
as a matter for negotiation,

A Logger.

Attention Pritchett

THE EDITOR:

There are three questions I’
like answered by our former
thers, Pritchett and Dalskog.

they were so deter: (
leave the IWA and were so 5
of their strength, why did they ne
cell a referendum vote of all mé
ers?

As trade unionists, how do #l

justifv mest unlonlinad

ey seriously expect
members of the IWA just to fo
up and die to suit their p