LUMBER WORKER ie, Progress ‘THE decision of the IWA membership to accept the recommendations of Chief Justice Sloan for settlement of the strike was a realistic one. It was based on a frank appraisal of the real gains represented by the Sloan for- mula, and the possibilities established for the next phase , of the war with the employers. : The fact that the settlement was accepted without any particular jubilation should not be interpreted as an ac- knowledgment by the Union of defeat. All hopes were not realized, but, nevertheless, gains were made, the reward for which will not be fully realized until future negotia- ; tions. : 1 One important achievement was negative in character, | and for that reason is not always adequately appreciated. The strike defeated the intention of the operators to cut wages. It arrested a move to lower living standards in the industry, which would otherwise have gathered momen- . tum year after year. A wage increase of 514 cents an hour instead of a wage cut is not to be despised. The entering wedge for perma: nent recognition of paid statutory holidays will continue | to split employer resistance to these more enduring fea-! tures of a contract. Issues such as those of health and welfare, fare eel travel allowances, the union shop have been placed on the agenda in such a fashion that they will compel the atten- tion of the employers and their ultimate adoption. The actual monetary gains is not a true measure of the actual gains made by the Union. A more fundamental gain is found in the fact that the Union met the chal-. Jenge of the employers with united determination and broke their adamant resolve to “hold the wage line”. If the Union had not met that chailenge this year, the Union would have been forced into a subservient position for many years to come. The best defence is always an of- fensive; At the outset of negotiations the employers did not believe that the Union would fight. Later, the larger employers, astride their accumulated profits and high inventories, said that they did not care, and prepared to starve their workers out. The employers received a bitter lesson by reason of the Union’s ability to marshall public opinion, and expose the employers’ disregard of the public interest. In the end, the employers found that they had to reckon with public opinion. Whatever may be the form of economic dictatorship they may seek to establish, like all other forms of rule, it must in the final analysis rest on the consent of the gov- erned. Even Hitler found that out. The IWA may take pride in the fact that it emerged from this hard-fought battle with its vitality unimpaired. The ranks of the Union are cemented into one fighting whole as never before. By reason of the bitter struggle, and the qualities developed in that struggle, the IWA is a more potent force, with which the employers must reckon, than ever before. Never Again EXPOSURE of the inadequacy of the ICA Act and its administration during the IWA negotiations and strike is a matter for which the province as a whole should be grateful to the IWA. If glaring defects are remedied as they should be, some hope may be established for indus- trial peace in the future. Not only the IWA was victimized by the perversion of the law for the purpose of the employers, but a widespread strike area bore witness to the fact that many other unions had encountered similar frustrations. With all deference to the outstanding ability of Chief Justice Sloan, his mediation accomplished no more than should have been accomplished at an earlier date, and with less cost to the workers. His success in mediation was at the same time a thorough-going condemnation of the failures of the exist- ing conciliation machinery. He brought out the fact, not previously conceded by the authorities, that a union never goes on strike except when denied just consideration of its rights. Those who have censured the IWA for strike action |) should now give consideration to the elimination of the fundamental causes of strikes. ‘The severe critics of the Union must now admit that its policies are determined in © the most democratic fashion. It is impossible for them to attribute to the membership of the IWA an attitude of irresponsibility toward the public interest. The strike should have awakened the general public : to the urgent need for amended legislation. Restrictions now imposed upon the Unions and which confer advan- tages upon the employers, do not promote genuine and fruitful bargaining. Governments must be made to realize that the unions desire to bargain, and the employers are | determined to evade bargaining. The administration of the law is as important as its enactment. The greatest obstacle to constructive concilia- tion at the present time, is the firmly rooted belief that "the Labor Relations Board has become the tool of the employers, | mt oe SX WCRERSE 1 { wt neh \ ! done Cai ( i d The IWA may now well ask, why it was presented ! r with an interpretation of the law, which differed from all previous interpretations and was designed to trap the IWA. Why should the employers be allowed to violate the letter and spirit of the law with impunity, when the effort was made to bring the Union to book for the results of its scrupulous observance of the legal formalities. ‘ i Why should the trade union movement in this province any longer endure the dictates of officials in whose opinion the unions are always wrong, and the employers always right. | z Rumors are afloat in political circles that the newly- installed Social Credit Government favors the introduction of compulsory arbitration to outlaw strikes. 2 The record of the Social Credit Government in Albérta toward labor is not one calculated to inspire confidence in a Board appointed to enforce acceptance of wage awards by a Social Credit arbitration tribunal. If organized labor is deprived of the strike weapon and left defenceless against the ruthless employers in this province, greater evils than strikes will menace our indus- trial growth. - The responsibility rests upon organized labor to estab- | lish political rules in these matters which will admit of social progress in relations between employers and em- ployees, and which will seek higher ideals of industrial democracy in the development of the wealth of the province. Strayed Trust-Busters OTTAWA (CPA) — The high-’ powered, high-paid brains trust of Canada’s Combines Commi: sion has been put to work to p: |duce a detailed documented co: prehensive report—on the acti ties of 18 trade unionists trying to protect their jobs and income. of free enterprise, the latest Combines Commission report suggests that officers of the Ca- nadian Congress of Labor, Cana- dian Bakery Workers’ Union, in Winnipeg, broke the Combines law by refusing to deliver bread 0 to stores which gave cash-and- Hailed by the business press as | carry customers price advantages a great new extension of Com-| over their own door-to-door bread bines Investigation in the interest | wagon delivery customers. A : BALANCED [ RATION ; ; Sliepread Y Listen to GB — CKWX — 5:30 p.m. Mon. thru Fri. Ane B. C. 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