10

B.C. LUMBER WORKER

Ist Issue, July

Court's Decisions
Jeopardize Unions

Two Supreme Court deci:

ions in the U.S.—both handed

down in May—have opened up the door for state courts to
inflict their wills upon national labor-management relations.

In permitting the states to levy
punishment against unions, the
Court has in effect — ruled that
Taft-Hartley does not prohibit
state courts from inflicting dam-
ages upon unions despite the uni-
form procedures established under
the law and administered by the
National Labor Relations Board.

Damages For Scab

One of the two rulings upheld
an award by a state court that
gave damages to a strikebreaker
who charged that he was denied
entry into a struck plant by “mass
picketing and force and violence.”
In the second case, a union was
ordered to pay a worker whom it
had expelled a sum for lost wages
and for “grievous physical and
mental pain and suffering.”

The yote on both issues was six
to two. Strong dissents were
filed by Chief Justice Earl War-
ren with Justice William O. Doug-
las concurring,

State Damages

The suit for picketing damages
was filed by Jaul S. Russell, a non-
union employee of Calumet &
Heela, Inc., of Decatur, Ala. Rus-
sell—who is a board member of
the National Right to Work Com-
mittee—claimed that he lost five
weeks of work as a result of a
1952 strike.

Early in the strike, Russell at-
tempted to drive his car across a
mass picket line. His car was
stopped, but he was not physically
harmed, Five weeks later, when
he attempted to cross the picket
line again, he was able to get
through and go to work,

An Alabama court awarded
Russell $10,000 — an amount al-
most 20 times the pay he lost by
not working,

Breach of Contract
The other case involved a claim

for damages on a breach of con-
tract theory. Marcos Gonzales, a
San Francisco machinist, was ex-
pelled from the IAM. for making
false and malicious statements
about a fellow-member. Gonzales
claimed the union expulsion pro-
hibited him from getting work and
that the union action was illegal,

A California court ordered his
reinstatement in the union and
awarded Gonzales $6,800 for lost
wages and $2,500 for physical and
mental suffering.

As a direct result of the two
decisions, unions now face the
possibility of a wave of financially-
crippling suits. IUD General
Counsel Arthur Goldberg pointed
out that the rulings “might im-
peril the very right to strike by
making bankruptcy the penalty for
engaging in this guaranteed, con-
Stitutional right.”

While management lawyers
publicly scoffed at the view that
the Court rulings would inhibit
strikes, one company counsel ad-
mitted that the Russell case was
stronger than any legislation that
could be devised to stop mass
picketing.

William T. Harrison, executive
secretary of the National Right to
Work Committee, hailed the Rus-
sell decision. He declared that it
would “make unions think twice
before using violence on the picket
lines.” Harrison overlooked Rus-
sell’s own admission that he had
not been physically harmed,

Labor attorneys are especially
fearful that the Russell case will
serve as a curb against legitimate
strikes in “unfriendly areas.” They
charge that court action in the
“right to work” states can be ex-
pected to be much more severe
in judging union unfair labor

practices than any federal ruling.

Getty

Backs
Unions

OTTAWA (CPA) — Billion-
aire oilman Jean Paul Getty in
a magazine interview has
strongly defended unions and
the labor movement, according
to an article in LABOR, a
weekly paper published by a
number of rail unions. The in-
terview with Mr. Getty, often
described as one of the ten rich-
est men in the world, was car-
tied in the June 1958 issue of
TRUE, a man’s magazine.

Getty declared in the interview
that, “To hear some men talk, la-
bor in general and union labor in
particular are threatening ~ to
wreck the national economy.” He

quoted an executive who said that
he'd go into business on his own
“if it wasn’t for the labor situa-
tion”. and “high wages.” Mr.
Getty described the executive as
an “idiot.”
Strongest Bulwark

“I'm a union man myself,” Mr.
Getty declared. “I don't carry a
union card or pay dues to any
local, but I believe in unions and
I believe that free, honest labor
unions are our greatest guaran-
tees of continuing prosperity and

our strongest bulwark against
social and economic totalitarian-
ism,

“High pay and good working
conditions mean more buying
power and more production,” he
continued, “As buying power in-
creases, so do sales and profits.
‘Execessive labor cost’ is just a
handy excuse to cover up inept
management’s inability to meet
competition,” Getty sai

WATCH LISTS!

Trade unionists are re-
minded that the Vancouver
Civic Voters’ list will be open
for registration from August
2-21 at the City Clerk’s Of-
fice, City Hall.

What The Budget Means To You

By FRANK HOWARD, M.P.

All members of the I.W.A. and Pulp and Sulphite should
be most interested in the first Conservative budget. As we

all know

there is but one element in society

that ever pays

for anything and that is the individual. And individuals make

up the greater part of Canada,
individuals are working class
plywood workers, pulp mill
ete,

What does the Conservative
budget means to you? How are
you affected and how will you
benefit?

H. R. MacMillan

Well, for one thing, if you own
a logging company or your name
is H. R. MacMillan you can
double your contribution to char-
itable organizations from $% to

DENTAL
PLATES

40

The Dental Association has for~
bidden Dr. R. Llewellyn Douglas
(Old Doc) from announcing
publicly thet he is willing and
eble to provide top quality,
guarenteed dental plates ot
only $40 per plate.

WHY
PAY
MORE?

Needless to say most of these
people; loggers, millworkers,
workers, paper mill workers,

10% of your income and get a
tax concession on this,

Tf you get a sufficient amount
of sawdust in your eyes and need
glasses you may deduct the cost
of these glasses from your income,
provided that the total amount
spent for medical purposes ex-
ceeds 3% of your income.

Thinking of sending flowers to
your best girl? Do it now and
save 10%, for the sales tax on cut
flowers has been eliminated. This
doesn’t mean, though, that the
10% reduction will be passed on
to you.

Bunkhouse Rats

Do you want to get rid of the
rats around your bunkhouse or
around the cookhouse? You can
do this by buying rat poison and
the 10% sales tax will not apply
on this either, Unless, of course,
the manufacturer decides to keep
the 109% and not pass it on to you,

Yes, you can benefit to this ex-
tent as a result of the budget. But
you can’t benefit as much as you

thought you might be able to if
you have been relying on the Con-
servative election promises. There
is no reduction in personal in-
come tax; no increase in the
allowable income; no removal of
the discriminatory parts of the Old
Age Security portion of the tax.

Powell Mines Cook
This budget reminds me of a
cook. who used to work at. the
Powell Mines Co’s. Aero camp on
the Queen Charlotte Islands. He
used to dream (nightmare would
be more correct) up the most vile
looking slumgullion, All that it
consisted of was a lot of yester-
day’s leftovers camouflaged with
a rich pastry and plenty of gravy.
It looked good, tasted like old
gear oil and had no nourishment.
Perhaps a former Camp Superin-
tendent at Aero’s is now advising

Finance Minister Fleming.

Permanent

The Canadian Conference on
Education, convened in Ottawa
last February by 19 sponsoring
organizations including the Can-
adian Labor Congress, is now a
Permanent body with the ap-
Pointment of Miss Caroline
Robins as executive secretary,
reports IWA Associate Re-
search and Education Director

Joe Miyazawa.

available through

Basic Accident Prevention.

180 West Hastings Street

INSTRUCTION IN INDUSTRIAL FIRST AID

ugh fpormespendepes Courses Inading: to Snsitrial
it Ald Certificates approved by the Workmen's Compensation
Aas B.C. Also Correspondence Course in Timekeeping and

THE INDUSTRIAL FIRST AID ATTENDANTS ASSN. OF B.C,

Vancouver 3, B.C,

MEMBERS, LOCAL 1-357 (above), leave membership meeting which
packed Queen’s Park Arenex to capacity to discuss Conciliation Board’s
report. (Below) WYMAN TRINEER, Business Agent, takes the microphone,
flanked by Rae Eddie and Joe Madden, Chairman. Fred Fieber, guest
speaker on the occasion is seated in the rear.

EDITORIAL
Internationalism

NUMBER of management people, enthusiastically

echoed by a sizeable group of editorial writers, are

kicking up quite a fuss these days about Canadian
workers belonging to international unions.

The fact is that about 70 per cent of the union mem-
ber in Canada are members of internationals — that has
been their choice and it is their business what choice
they make. It will be a sad day for employees if employ-
ers have their way in deciding just what union a person
will belong to.

Accompanying all this hullabaloo is a lot of non-
sense about fantastic sums of money being sent to the
United States by union members in Canada. The fact
about this is that Canadian workers have got far more in
benefits out of international unions than they have ever
put in in dollars.

That applies particularly to the small unions. With
a limited population and tremendous travelling distances,
organization in Canada is difficult and costly. It would
never have reached its present proportions without the
support that has been given by international unions. And
while this applies particularly to smaller unions the same
principle exists in the larger organizations,

Through a Canadian structure, of which the Cana-
dian Labour Congress as an autonomous Canadian body
is a highly important part, Canadian workers in interna-
tionals have an opportunity of running their own affairs
and at the same time enjoying all the benefits and
strength that comes from a larger organization. There
is a place for national unions and there is a place for
international unions ; but the decision is one for the mem-
bers — not their employers.

(FROM CLC LABOUR)

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