B.C.

LUMBER WORKER

iW

Impressions of

A Glove Factory

By IWA ROVING REPORTER

There are a lot of things in life that we take for grant-
ed, such as gloves, for instance. Yet, if we stop and think,
there are a lot of occupations in our industry that would
be mighty uncomfortable, if we were suddenly deprived of
protection for our hands, especially when handling rough
stuff in tough weather. I found this out when I was cour-
teously escorted through the Watson Glove factory by its
Sos and friendly manager-owner, W. T. “Dinty”
oore.

The visit was more than a compliment to a regular patron of
the BCLW advertising columns. The Union had been advised by
official trade union sources, that John Watson Ltd. is the only
unionized gloye manufacturing firm in the province. This was
found to be true, and what is more, that the union contract with
this firm provides for a 100% union shop.

___ Naturally, this point is of interest to the IWA. Gloves are
important to men working in logging operations. It has peen
rumored that another Vancouver firm has been making a bid for
loggers’ business, representing its product as union made. As a
matter of fact, this rival firm has opposed the unionization of its
employees, and does not hold any union contract.

However, the Union, with jurisdiction in this matter is deal-
ing with that subject. In the meantime, it is well to remember
et Watson’s Work Gloves are produced under union shop con-

itions.

When you’re asked, you can

say that the union holding the
contract is the Vancouver Glove
Makers’ Federal Union, Local No.
582. For years, Dave Morgan, a
cutter in the plant, has been
President of this Local, which is
made up mainly of the employees
of the John Watson Co. Ltd.

Conditions must be reasonably
satisfactory, because we found
that quite a number of the em-
ployees had been with the Com-
pany for long periods of service.

simple reason that this manu-

facturing plant attracts workers
from other countries who have
already acquired the special skills
of the trade.

Tailored for the Job

There’s more to this glove busi-
ness than the average person re-
alizes. Work gloves are made to
fit the job performed by the
owner. A man working on the
green chain must have a glove or

mitt that is styled quite differ-
ently from that used by a man on
the rigging, or a linesman, or a
roping cowboy.

‘Sometimes the emphasis is on
pliability, sometimes on dura-
bility, sometimes on protection
against heat, and sometimes on
protection against cold.

A chokerman gets a glove that
he can slip his hand out of easily
and quickly, if caught in the rig-
ging. Some gloves are asbestos-
lined for handling hot steel.
Others, like welders, have built-
in protection against sparks. All
of them are usually reinforced at
the points where the material
handled gives the most severe
wear.

It was interesting to find out
that the union members who
make the gloves, are often the
first to invent a solution for the

The cards on the time-clock read
like the United Nations, for the

special requirements of the own-
ers.

Leather That Suits
All this means that “Dinty”
Moore and his partner, Fred
Arundel, must know leather and
where to get the right quality of
leather. Most of this leather is

‘|tanned and processed for them

outside the province. They buy
processed goatskin, for light-
weight and pliability, in which
field the B.C. deerskin has, now
won some merit. For the heavier
wear they must provide horse-
hide, and cowhide, sometimes
with what they call “splits”, de-
pending on the wear expected.

Automatic machinery is invad-
ing this industry, as elsewhere in
the surrounding factories. As we
watched the workers, both men
and women, however, we decided
that in glove production, automa-
tie machinery may never quite
replace the manual skills.

This seemed to be especially
true, where they were turning the
gloves and’ finishing them with
an eye to the comfort of the
wearer. No automatic machine
will likely replace the cutter who
can judge leather, and place his
cutting dies to get the most out
of the hide.

Some employers talk as though
the unionization of their employ-
ees and the union shop spell busi-
ness ruin. This is ‘not true of
Dinty Moore.

His greatest worry, when we
visited his plant was that he was
being swamped with orders, from
all over B.C., as far east as
Manitoba, and even from Hills-
boro, West Virginia. He and his
employees are proud of the qual-
ity which they put into the Wat-
son gloves, under union shop con-
ditions.

Anybody who doesn’t believe
this is very welcome at the plant,
where the door is always open to
a lumber worker, especially the
lumber worker who may have
ideas about good gloves.

It was lunch time. The worker
opened his lunch box, looked in,
and growled: “Cheese sand-
wiches! Cheese sandwiches! Al-
ways cheese sandwiches!”

“Why don’t you ask your wife
to make some other kind?” asked
a fellow worker.

“Wife? Who's married? I make
these myself.”

ee *

Didja hear the Texas yarn
about the woman who called her
husband and asked: ‘Will you
please get out the car,.Tex, and
drive the kids to the backyard so

they can play?”

TA. 1121

for FREE HOME
DELIVERY
“Also Brewers and Bottlers

@
Olde Ale, Silver
% Beer and

bys),

“This advertisement le not published
| canbe ey allen
Bowd o iha Colombia.

“ON
THE
LABOR
SCENE”’

BY DAN ILLINGWORTH

REGULARLY IN

The
Province

100% UNION PRODUCED BY
VANCOUVER MEN AND WOMEN

Local 1-357 Elects
Council Delegates

Local 1-357, LWA, New West-
minster, at the postponed an-
nual meeting held December 2,
filled a number of important
offices, and elected personnel
for its various delegations.
Delegates to the District Con-
vention, and the Local Union
officers will be elected at a later
date.

Results of the elections held
were as follows:

District Executive Board mem-
ber, Rae Eddie; Alternate Dis-
trict Executive Board Member,
Joe Madden; Local Union Safety
Director, Wyman Trineer; Press
Manager, Bill Wilson; Education
Director, Leo Stadnyk.

Elected as delegates to attend
the District Council Conferences
were Joe Madden, Wyman Trin-
eer, Phyllis Matheson, Mike But-
ler, Norman Kelly, Andy Smith,
Dan -McBride, Henry Switzer,
Bill Russell, Bill Wilson, Lewis
McLeod, Peter Rebeyka, and Alex
Anderson. Alternates elected were
Andy Bodnar, Harry Maisson-
euve, Jack Kenny, Ziggy Sauve,
and Leo Stadnyk.

Elected as delegates to the

Vancouver Labour Council were:
Lewis McLeod, Wyman Trineer,
Bill Wilson, Alex Anderson, Geo.
Mitchell, Andy Bodnar, Jack
Kenney, Henry Switzer, Mike
Butler, Peter Rabeyka, Bill Rus-
sell, Sandy Naylor, Harry Mais-
soneuve, and Leo Stadnyk.

Alternates elected were: Gil-
bert Lester, Walter Schultz, Steve
Bourgeois, Cahles McGillivary,
Pete Smitt, Al Sherlock, Frank
Towason, and Mike Terichow.

The members heard the call to
the Annual District Convention,
and detided to elect their dele-
gates early in January.

Plans were finalized for the
mammoth Christmas Party to be
held on Sunday, December 16th.
In addition, plans were authoriz-
ed under which Christmas hamp-
ers will be delivered to Local
Union members, sick, and not in
receipt of pay cheques for the
Christmas Season.

Donation of $600 was made to
the Alberta organization fund, as
part of the commitment prev-
jously made. ,
Candidates initiated numbered

218.

Education

Meet

Sets Program

A unique conference of uni-
versity people and trade union
leaders particularly interested
in workers’ education was held
in Ottawa, December 15-17 and
was attended by the IWA As-
sociate Director of Education,
Joe Miyazawa. Sponsored joint-
ly ‘by the Canadian Labour
Congress and the Canadian As-
sociation for Adult Education,
the conference brought together
labour and university represen-
tatives in the hope of improy-
ing labour’s educational pro-
grams and establishing a more
effective working relationship
between organized labour and
Canadian universities.

‘Sessions were presided over by

Fred Nicoll, Halifax, vice-presi-
dent and chairman of the educa-

tion committee of the CLC.
Speakers included Gordon Cush-
ing, Ottawa, CLC executive vice-
president; Max Swerdlow, Ot-
tawa, CLC director of education;
and Gordon Hawkins, Toronto,
associate director of the CAAE.

Bert Richardson, editor of the
Toronto Telegram, was luncheon
speaker on Saturday, when he
discussed the topic, “Labor Edu-
cation and the Press’. In the
afternoon there were panel dis-
cussions based on the morning’s
talks.

In the evening delegates to the
conference were the guests at a
banquet given by the CLC. Guest
speaker was Joseph Mire, Madi-
son, Wis., executive secretary of
the Inter-University Labor Edu-
cation Committee.

Unions

Two textile unions, both af-

filiates of the Canadian Labour ,

Congress, today worked out a
basis for closer co-operation, it
was announced by the CLC.
The unions — United Textile
Workers of America and Tex-
tile Workers’ Union of America
—haye, from time to time in
the past, been in conflict.

After today's meeting, spon-
sored by the CLC, they reported
that they had “reached an under-
standing on the principle of joint

bidden Dr. R. Llewellyn Douglos
(Old Doc) ‘from announcing
publicly that he is willing and
able to provide top quality,
guaranteed dental plates at
only $40 per plate.

Dr. R. Llewellyn Douglas

712 Robson St. Vancouver 1, B.C.
(Corner of Granville)

Phone: PAcific 4022

Merge

consultation for organization and
negotiation”. A sub-committee
was appointed to work out de-
tails.

The conference was one of a
series called by the CLC and par-
ticipated in by unions with mem-
bership in particular industries.

“Today’s meeting was most
successful and proves the possi-
bility of co-operation between
unions and the reduction of juris-
dictional differences,” said Claude
Jodoin, CLC President, who chair-
ed the meeting. s

Others taking part included:
Harold Daoust and Paul Swaity,
TWUA; Roger Provost, UTW;
Donald MacDonald, CLC Secre-
tary-Treasurer; and J. MacKen-
zie, CLC Director of Organiza-
tion,

Alex B. Macdonald

Barrister & Solicitor
Notary Public

751 Granyille Street
VANCOUVER, B.C.

Telephone TAtlow 6641

SOLICITOR TO THE 1. W.A