en

B.C. LUMBER WORKER .-

Son

INTERIOR BATTLE

By J. STEWART ALSBURY, _
. IWA District President c

IWA must now present the case for the Interior lumber
workers, in both the Southern and Northern Interior, before two
ciliation Boards. The issues involved are of importance to the
Union, and therefore require the consideration and support

P of the membership throughout British Columbi:

e Northern

d Southern In-
terior operators
“ displayed
same juc-
e to get ie
‘enuine bar-
ane g that be-

tio

Coast. Needless
delays have aris-
because of their unreadiness |
to come to grips with the ques-
tions involved.

"They have not claimed inability
to meet the monetary demands of
the Unions, but have relied main-
a, on the same old gloomy pr

jons about their market

rospects.

Support Required
When the issues are discussed
before the Conciliation Boards,
the Negotiating Committee will
make the utmost effort to present
a complete case for the Interior

lumber workers. At this juncture

a

3
a

it is important that all Coast
lumber workers recognize the
bearing which the Interior issues
have on standards already estab-
lished at the Coast.

It_is unthinkable that we
should permit a wage structure in
the Interior which will present a
constant threat to the wage

- Structure at the Coast.

Last year, we secured a base
rate for the’ Interior which was
actually 4-cent above the Coast
base rate—a rate of $1.30—al-
though the take-home pay was
not as high as at the Coast due
to the late application of the cost-
of-living bonus in the Interior.

One feature that we cannot
tolerate is the evident intention
of the Interior operators to again
bring the base rate below that
paid at the Coast. Our purpose
must be to continue the fight to
establish conditions in the In-
terior which are at least on a
parity with those established at
the Coast.

This, of course, applies to all
other features of the Interior
contracts as well as the wage
rates.

The market conditions are such
today, that if lower wages and
conditions prevail in the Interioi
our fellow-members in the I
terior will be undermining any-
thing gained at the Coast.

The Negotiating Committee
needs make no apology for enter-
ing this further fight in the In-
terior immediately after the con-

ONT. IWA
FACES ODDS

Ontario [WA members faced
with intimidation by the em-
ployers pledged a fight to the
finish in their four-week-old
strike at the Durham Furniture

Factory, Durham, Ont., re-
cently.

The strike involved 150 mem-
bers of Local 152, IWA who,
when faced with determined ac-
tion on the part of the Company
to break the Union, immediately
rallied their forces for a bitter
battle.

Deceit

Ample proof of the bad faith
displayed by the Company is that
at the conclusion of negotations
they posted a notice saying that
the Union had refused to accept
the recommendations of the
Chairman of the Conciliation
Board. The notice added that the
Company during negotiations had
offered the Union an increase of
8c an hour, retroactive to July
1st, 52, which the Union turned
down. |

Not only had no such offer
been made but the Company
themselves had refused to accept
their own Board nominee’s
recommendation.

When the workers ignored the
offer of the Company and decided
to go on with the strike the Com-
pany returned by registered mail,
Employees’ Unemployment In-
surance books, and the retroac-
tive pay they claimed the Union
had refused.

clusion of the strike at the
Coast. It is all part of the same
fight, and has the same purposes
in view.

By this action they hoped to
intimidate the Employees into
believing that the plant was clos-
ing down for good.

Sands Clai

°

ms Div

he

Right

To Damn CCL-UPWA Officers

Extracts from the “Fruit and Vegetable Worker” offi- ' of which I will never forget is,
cial publication of the Fruit & Vegetable Workers’ Union ‘to be true to yourself, and you
(TLC), formerly edited by W. H. Sands, now appointed
Deputy Minister of Labor, were read by George Home at man’...
a recent meeting of the Vancouver Labor Council as evi-
dence of the Deputy Minister’s bias against the Canadian

Congress of Labor.

The Secretary of the B.
Federation of Labor cited the ci:
cumstances under which the
Deputy Minister had formerly

been associated with the Cana-

dian Congress of Labor as a paid
official of the United Packing-
house Workers and an elected of-
ficer of the B.C. Federation of
Labor. |

From CCL to TLC

It was alleged by the speaker
that the present Deputy Minister
of Labor had used his position '
within the Canadian Congress of
Labor to advance the interests of
rival unions. Harsh words were
used to describe this action. {

The quotations read from the}
TLC nublication and attributed
to Sands were as follows: |

Tn article headed “The CCL—}
A Sinking Ship”, an attack made

on the CCL by the Canadian
Sailor was referred to and ap-
‘proved,

Villains All
The writer went on to say,
‘Canadian Sailor’ was quite
when they say the CCL has
n ‘unclear policy. Although we
-Wonde menether such men as Mil-
Dowling, and Symington
we any policy beneficial to la-
or whatsoever, eae
“They do have a policy in
h they hope to gain control
Canadian labor by calling
they cannot control
x a ‘Communist’ or a ‘com-
union man’. 2
is not long ago these peo-

ple were calling the International
Teamsters’ Union (one of the
largest and most powerful unions
in Canada and the USA) a ‘com-
pany union’... .

“The person who we do very
strenuously take exception to is
the person who will take orders
from such ‘power crazy dues col-
lectors’ as the Millards, Dowlings
and Symingtons .. .”

Open Letter

In an open, signed letter ad-
dressed to Bill Lynch, Intern:
tional Representative of the Uni
ed Packinghouse Workers, Mr.
Sands had this to say:

“Now the preliminaries are
over; I was born in the City of
Kelowna, my parents were immi-
grants from England, my father
was killed in the First Great
War; fighting for what he be-
lieved would rid the world of
people with dictatorial ideas, It
is obvious that the ideal he and
others had failed because there
arose after that war such people
as Hitler, Millard, Stalin, Sym-
ington and others who still in
their own way, large or small,
conceived the idea that they, by
any foul means at their disposal,
could rule the’ working class.

“?’m True to Me”

“My mother, a very religious
type of person, and one of the
finest women in this world, after
my father’s death became a fa-
ther and mother to me and taught
me the decent things of life, one

INDUSTRIAL FIRST

Approved by The Workmen's

AID CERTIFICATES
Compensation Board of B.C.

Ses ghte eels
Cnn aha Cormarontecs,

‘Aid Attendants Are invited to Membership

never need to worry ‘that you
won’t be true to your fellow-

“During the time I have been
working full time, I have made
| mistakes, Mr. Lynch, but I be-
\lieve I ‘have learnt’ something
from each one of them. The only
perfect man was Jesus Christ,
and they crucified Him...
“Those who are not governed

by God, will be ruled by
tyrants.”

NEW BOARD

WASHINGTON (LPA)—With
organized labor praised for_con-
tinuing to serve, a new Wage
Stabilization Board drastically
curbed by Congress was named
by, President Truman, who ap-
|pointed labor members recom-
mended by AFL President Green
and CIO President Murray.

The new chairman, Archibald
Cox, said July 31 that the board,
despite loss of powers the old one
had, would be an “effective” one.
| Retiring Chairman Nathan Fein-
singer predicted the new body,
within its limitations, would
function about as in the past.

SAN FRANCISCO
— TAILORS —
LOAN MONEY ON

Suits, Overcoats, ete,
Loggers’ Boots, Sleeping
Bags, Suitcases, Radios,

Watches and Rings

Expert Watch Repairing

UNREDEEMED

Suits and Caulk Boots
For: Sale

MAIL ORDER

52 West Hastings Street,
VANCOUVER, B.C.

Franklin Debunks
C. of C. Charges

Counter-blast against attempts of the Chamber of Commerce to smear
trade unions with accusations of civil disobedience and Iuw-breaking was

given this week by W. R, Franklin,

editorial appearing recently inthe Fraser Valley

“Certain inferences may be
drawn from the opinions of the
Chamber of Commerce, quoted in
your editorial of August 6, which
distort the aims and purposes of
trade unions. This distortion oc-
curs mainly because the C. of C.
represents almost exclusively the
employers’ interests, and does not
represent fully a cross-section of
community opinion.

If the statement was intended
to apply to the IWA and the re-
cent strike, it fails to take into
consideration all the facts, and
therefore makes deductions which
are inaccurate. :

IWA Policy

The IWA is in complete agree-
ment with the statements that
both labor and management
should rely on collective bargain-
ing and in conduct of those pro-
cedures accept the rule of law.
The IWA does not condone civil
disobedience, nor does it advocate
law-breaking.

As the facts have already
shown, the IWA is in a position
to defend itself against all
charges of intent to disregard
the law. The Chamber of Com-
merce should observe the simple
prineiple of British justice, that
innocence is assumed, until guilt
is actually proven.

Law Observed

Despite thé fact that the law
governing bargaining and con-
ciliation procedures confers dis-
tinet advantages upon the em-
ployers, the IWA adhered scrupu-
lously to the observance of the
law. Had the employers done
likewise, and had the law been
administered with impartiality,
no question of illegality could
have been raised at any stage.

The law prescribes sixty days
for negotiations and any neces-
sary conciliation, The IWA ob-
served that requirement, as re-
gards, both the commencement
and conclusion of the stipulated
period for settlement of the dis-
pute. The deadline set by the
IWA openl~, was the legal dead-
line, the termination date of the
contract, sixty days after bar-
gaining had commenced.

Administration Faulty

The IWA did not fail the law,
the administration of the law
failed the IWA. The administra-
tion of the law permitted need-
less delays, inspired by the em-
ployers, which hampered rather
than facilitated possibilities of
settlement.

When application was made for

Local 1-367, IWA, in reply to an
Record, He said:

held before the legal deadline.
For reasons that are without
precedent, and not founded in
law, the strike vote was held in
abeyance, ds

Courts Decide

Actually the illegalities per-

petrated upon the IWA, while
endeavoring to observe the law,
made it appear that the IWA
was acting in an illegal man-
ner. The interpretation placed
by the IWA upon its legal
rights under circumstances that
were deliberately confused,
should not be regarded as a
decision to break the law. Only
the courts may decide whether
the Union’s or the employers’
interpretations were in accord
with the intent of the law.

When required to issue direc-
tives to obey injunctions restrain-
ing picketing, the 1WA aid so.
in accoraance with its democratic
rights, the IWA contested the
rignt of the courts to restrain
legal picketing. It was soon dis-
covered that a court order was
in error, which presumed to re-
strain trade union members from
doing that which they are legally
entitled to do.

May I suggest that if the
Chamber of Commerce desires to
secure industrial peace, and to
encourage trade union members
to uphold the rule of law, that
body should likewise advocate
even-handed justice in industrial
relations, and the administration
of the law governing such mat-
ters.”

F.S.A. MAN
TO SPEAK

Oscar C. Pogge, director of
the federal bureau of old-age
and survivors insurance with
the Federal Security. Agency,
will be among speakers at the
16th annual convention of the
International Woodworkers of
America, CIO, according to
Carl Winn, IWA Secretary-
Treasurer.

The convention will be Sep-
tember 15 through 19 at the Ma-
sonic temple in Portland, Ore.

Pogge first joined the FSA 15
years ago as chief of the claims
division. He has been director
since 1944. Under his direction,
the total administrative costs of
the bureau, including internal
revenue bureau collection costs,
has been reduced to 2% of social

a supervised strike vote, assur-security taxes. This is believed
ance was given that it would be less than private insurance costs.

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*& THE VA

PROVINCE
UNION - PRODUCED BY
MEN AND WOMEN WHO
BELONG TO ONE OF

Vancouver Typographical Uni

Vancouver
Local 25, (TLC-AFL),

Local 88 (TLC-AFL).

PAcific

Product of SIX UNIONS /

THESE UNIONS:

Printing Pressmen & Assistants Union,

Vancouver Photo-engravers Union, Local 54 (TLC--AFL).)

Electrotypers & Stereotypers, Yancouver and Yictoric,

Vancouver Mailers Union, Local 70 (TLC-AFL).

BOOS ee eee
a

NCOUVER
1S 100%

ion, Local 226 (TLC-AFL).

Vancouver Newspaper Guild, Local 207 (CCL-CIO).

THE VANCOUVER PROVINCE

4211