(ae

B.C. LUMBER WORKER

B.C. SPURS PROGRESS

Approval of the Officers’

Report, as recommended by

the Officers’ Report Committee at the recent IWA Interna-
tional Convention carried with it the declaration that all
IWA Local Unions will in future be urged to participate
fully in a safety program modelled after that which has
already been established in the B.C. District.

The Officers’ Report Committee
(J. Kneeland, Chairman, and Er-
nest Boulet, Secretary) fully con-
curred with the view expressed
by the International Officers to
the effect that the accident rate
in the lumber industry must be
curbed through more intensive
accident prevention organization.

The International Officers, deal-
ing with this subject, informed
the convention as follows:

Report

“The President’s Conference on
Industrial Safety estimates that
the cost to employers alone for
accidents amounts to over three
billion dollars a year, with the
cost to employees perhaps equal-
ing that figure. .

‘The total depends on just what
costs are included. The doctor’s
bills are usually put in; so are
the totals of Workmen’s Com-
pensation payments and estimates
of production losses.

The losses to a family which
has suffered a stoppage of in-
come, or a le-sening of it, due to
an injury or death of a bread-
winner, must be guessed at, and
sometimes are not considered in
statistical reports.

But, the total is big in any
case, It is big enough that the
addition or subtraction of a bil-
lion dollars or even two, does not
reduce or enlarge the importance

of the problem,

If the smaller figure is taken,
if the suffering of the injured
and the misery of the dependents
of the ‘injuries’ and the ‘fatali-
ties’ is only guessed at, there is
still enough. evidence to show one
reason for taking action on a
problem. ;

The evidence helps to explain
why this Union and many .em-
ployérs ae convinced that acci-
dent prevention is good business
from the point of view of eco-
nomics and humanitarianism. It
helps to show why this Union
takes an active part in forming
and participating in plans de-
signed for reduced injuries to its
members.

Causes Can Be Found

To state the size and import-
ance of the problem of the ‘ac-
cident-in-industry does not give
all of the reasons for taking
action to reduce it. If indus-
trial accidents ‘just happen’
there would be little basis for
action.

But behind each injury, be-
hind each entry into the fa-
tality column, a cause can be
found, Experts believe that 98
percent of these causes can be
controlled or eliminated.

B.C. District Leads

This Union participates in a

number of ways in safety pro-
grams. It participates in the
National Safety Council Program
in State Safety Conferences. It
participates in Union - Manage-
ment Industry Conferences and
in Plant Safety programs.

B.C. District Council No. 1 has
a full-time Safety Director, Bro-
ther John Atkinson, whose efforts
in the field of safety, combined
with the cooperative efforts of
the Safety Committees that serve
with him in the various Locals
and plants, have built an enviable
record in the lumbering industry
in their area.

‘The combined efforts of Union |

and management in the safety
programs of B.C., particularly
on the Coast, have resulted in
amazing savings to the employers
in payments to Workmen’s Com-
pensation, and on innumerable
occasions, in savings to the indi-
vidual worker, the extent of
which can never be known.

We are sorry to say that a like
record does not exist in any of
the United States, although the
State of Washington does a
pretty fair job.

The Record
The following is a recard of
the 1952 fatalities and the
number of time-lost claims for
the areas mentioned.

Time-
Lost

Area ‘Fatalities Claims
Br. Columbia 85 9,574
Oregon 95 12,929
Wash, 43 4,601
TOTAL 223 27,104

WITHOUT A TIME LOSS

LETS ADD -
ANOTHER DAY

D) >

ACCIDENT /

~ TODAY

STAVE LAKE CEDAR safety men point with pride to the score board which discloses one of the

best safety records achieved by a mill in its category. The accident-free_period has now _been_ex-

tended to 240 days.

OFFICERS

SELL

SAFETY PLAN

Thorough coverage has been
made in recent weeks of opera-
tions within the jurisdiction of
Local 1-80, IWA, by District
Safety Director, John T. Atkin-
son, and the officers of the Lo-
cal Union.

Purpose of the tour was to
capitalize fully on Safety Week
plans in order to improve the
safety records at all points.

President Tony Poje accompa-
nied the Director through the
Port Renfrew operations of B.C.
Forest Products Ltd., and: ad-
dressed large meetings at Bear
Creek and Harris Creek camps.

operation at Nanaimo River.

Business Agent J. Colwell was
at hand for meetings in other
camps of MacMillan & Bloedel
and those of the Comox Logging
Company.

Good Response

At all points the response to
the appeal for more vigorous ac-
tion with regard to safety was
excellent, and steps were taken
to step up the tempo of the work
entrusted to job safety com-
mittees.

Stress was laid by the speakers
on the fact that where theré is

good organization, safer condi-
tions result. It was advocated
“if the job isn’t safe, don’t do it.”

The Too Far

The accidents recorded |
_ B.C. lumber industry to

17 DOESWT TAKE HAUL y,
DRIPS T0 MAKE A OROP