= Page Two eC. wo. B.C. LUMBER WORKER Comment We EDITORIALS We Truth About the Interior HAD it not been for the breakaway from the IWA of the “41 frightened men”, Interior lumber workers would not be settling for an eight cent across the board wage increase this week, ‘A bold statement? No! Wrong presentation of the facts? No! The whole, blunt truth—most unacceptable to the group of men who have been trying desperately to whip up strike action by the strategic use of their highly voluble minority of followers. NEGOTIATIONS began in the early summer, ~ “shortly after the coastal representatives went into action. Had the coast negotiations been properly han- dled they would have been over by mid-July at the latest. Instead, they were dragged out to September by the ridiculous presentation of what could have been an excellent case. ALSKOG and Company for’some weird and wonderful reason, thought it proper to intro- duce the “stool pigeon” issue: they presented it badly: their counsel antagonized all reasonable men within his hearing: and when he was absent, Dalskog and Pritchett fumbled their way through pathetic cross-examinations. We know the result: 18 cents or 11 per cent; unanimously agreed to by their picked man, Har- vey Murphy. } - That 18-cent level could and should have been the level for the interior. BOUT the time the nine per cent conciliation ¢ board majority report came out, Pritchett and Company decided to hit it for the high timber. They shirked their job. They left the interior men without proper district-wide representation. International and district officers stepped into the picture, handicapped by the lack of records. They have produced a worthy result — 8 cents across the board. Swing That Axe, Brother! Thought for the Week! IME marches on, and. still we patiently wait to bear more of the “mass certifications” which Pritchett and his group have been claiming for their alleged organi- zation, Six weeks ago the Labor Relations Board in Victoria told our Harold that the two solitary applications he made were not properly submitted, and should be sent in again with [len details—probably lists and addresses of the alleged members. ERTIFICATION is the undoubted test of member- ship, and we are prepared to face up to any factual “counting of heads’, even by an official government body. PERTINENT QUES PRITCHETT, Dalskog, McCuish and the the white-haired boys in the breakaway, dependent” organization are very, very busy t days. We could liken their dashing about the coun i to the activities of panic-striken men, with nq fidence in any single operation that their alleged hold over the membership will stay that way fot any length of time at all. \WWHEN the “WIUC” spouters reach your mill or camp, ask them to answer following simple questions. Insist they be explicit in their answers, What happened to the strike fund ? Why was,a personal promissory note for $1305.78 in the name of Karl E. Dalskog, guaranteed by IWA Local 1-71 officials, stamped with the IWA seal, and charged to the IWA account on October 4, 1948? How do they justify the payment of $85: John Stanton, “WIUC” lawyer around the t of the breakaway? Why was a total of $31,541 handed over in vari- ous cheques to Harvey Murphy’s Mine, Mill union as “donations” from the IWA? Where is that $31,541 now? Who are the “trustees” holding the $134,000 strike fund, as admitted by Parkin? Where is the money? Why was the hurried breakaway made without > a a any reference even to local executive boards, never ‘ mind to the membership by ballot? LET THE CHIPS FALL by Windy Hone REAL GOOD BELLY-LAUGH was had by all loyal IWA LIFE IS NEVER DULL AT FRASER MILLS || By HARRY SWITZER Chairman, Fraser Mills Grievance |] Committee In the Fraser Mills there is never a dull moment in the life of men at the back-fire of the “WIUC” tactics in the Interior last week .. . from out of Cranbrook came the stirring (?) news that the “WIUC” urged rejection of the 5% cent em- ployers’ offer. . . but less than 12 hours later IWA came forth with the 8-cent, and nine-per-cent offer squeezed from the bosses . . . explain that away, Harold! DELIBERATE DELETIONS in the 1948-1949 contract, ‘caused by the inactions of P tt and Da g, still annoy us. Mind you, the terrible twins had time to send out Harvey Murphey’s min- ority report in full to the member- ship, in which it was quoted that $1.08 was established as the mini- _mum rate. But they didn’t have time to see that figure into the eontract. o* BERT MELSNESS . . we wonder what has happened to that worthy, former top LWA man turned rebel . . we neither see nor hear of maybe he has him nowadays .. - stepped out of LPP favor and has been condemned to a year-and-a- day of sackeloth and ashes. ae RAN ACROSS an old shop stew- ards’ instructions list of 1-80 when the Commies were in charge. “None of the per capita goes to the United States, “it honestly says . . “It is all banked in B.G., to pay for international district’ organ- izers.” How right they are, but how they changed their tune to a pack of lies when it suited them! Express your opinions —use the B.C. Lumber ‘Worker “Mail Bag” freely. Representing the Organized Loggers and Mill Workers of B.C, PUBLISHED EVERY MONDAY BY INTERNATIONAL WOODWORKERS OF AMERICA (CIO) B.C, DISTRICT COUNCIL No. 1. PROVISIONAL OFFICERS A Whalen, Ist Vice-President Tod Aiba. President si Vice-President Squires, 2ad d G, McEatée, 3rd Vice-President M. Sekora, Financial Secretary |. Morris . S. Alsbury, Int. Board Member y Subscription rates, $1.00 per year. 25,000 copies printed this issue. Adyertising rates on application. ROOM 218 LEE BLDG. FAir. 9024 VANCOUVER, B.C, Authorized as Second Class Mail. Post Office Dept., Ottawa a a member on the grievance com- mittee. That statement can be fully en- dorsed by the members of the Com- mittee, As it was explained to me the other day by one of our mem- bers, “The Grievance Committee is like a safety valve for the member- ship.” I do agree that many problems can be solved before they become acute by an alert grievance com- mittee, Listed is a review of a few of the cases discussed between man- agement and your grievance com- mittee. The Company did agree that oil up time would be paid on the auto- matic trimmers No. 1 and No. 2 for two men during the regular lunch period, that the senior men on Nos. 1 and 2 trimmers be paid }34-hour extra for oil-up and change one saw per day, starting Sept. 20, The Blatee alll sizer oiler now receives e oilers’ full rat 1.04%. oot _The new category of pull from rip to trim on the upstacker set up be increased from basic rate of 95c to premium rate of 9944c. This was a very acceptable offer as it enalbed Brother Ulland to regain the pay he previously had on the old unstacker set-up. The log slip scalers’ rate was fi- nally settled after lengthy discus- sion that brought the officers of Stuart Research into the picture, but, despite that the Brother was able to show an increase in his take-home pay, and that’s what counts, I’m told. July 7, 1948, is an outstanding date as it was agreed that from that day forward no persons on a temporary job ean build up senior- ity. Py HE WANTS TO KNOW! The Editor: G When are we going to hear all about what has happened to our IWA money, now in the hands of Pritchett and Dalskog? A lot of the boys here are get- ting very impatient. We appreciate that the B.C. Lumber Worker, and the organizers who have been around, have told us what has hap- pened to it. But surely it is time that the lawyers for the IWA were pushing the case on, so that the courts and the public will be able to judge for themselves what has happened to the dough. If I have to lose a few days’ work, I’ll be down in that court in Vancouver to hear the answers of the men who betrayed me. _I and an awful lot of others ing away more than $30,000 of our want to know how they justify giv- money to a union that is not even on strike, and then getting it back from that very same union again. _And I want to know by what right they paid all that money ($8,500) to John Stanton as re- tainer fees around the time they got out of the WA. It was all IWA money. They had no right to touch it. C.&A. Logging BOB (Speed) KING Port McNeil $200 WIPED OUT The Editor: At is good to see that at last we might get somewhere on the Board rates. As I understand it, the union is meeting with Stuart Research on November 30, actually to begin col- lective bargaining on board and lodging prices. It certainly is not before time. I’ve paid nearly $200 in extra board rates since April, and that has more than wiped out any increase I got in my pay. We can rightly blame “WIUC” for the mess the board rates question is in, but in the meantime we've got to stick to- gether and by refusing to have truck with the “WIUC” soli our ranks and present a really strong front to these penny-pinch- ing bosses, Honeymoon Bay, LOGGER. THE RIGHT MOVE The Editor: _ The fellows in this camp wi listened to Green Gold last figure that the IWA made a move in allowing misled W members back into the IWA. What we need is a si to protect us should a de: come. Of course we di int Pritchett or Dalskog or any of thi ringleaders of the uni é outfit. _ But there are lots of guys wi joined the WIUC out of ic Now that the issues have plained they see their m .. Nothing can be gained by h ing anything against a man made a mistake .. . pro y the he is going to be loyal fi on out. We're all for bi pager let’s take 1 in on ing the WA. &"