: Ist Issue, July B.C. LUMBER WORKER. T.V.A. Success Defies Critics Since the end of World W. ar IT, some 17,000 foreign vi tors have come to America to witness one of the greatest ex- periments in democracy—the Tennessee Valley Authority. Among the visitors have been kings, queens, presidents, prime ministers and ordinary people that hoped someday to view similar wonders in their homelands. President Stayed Away ignificantly, the list of vi has not included President hower or any member of his cab- inet. And, it was no surprise when the President completely ignored TVA’s recent celebration of its 25th anniversary. President Eisenhower's views on TVA like so many other things --are dictated by the personal in- terests of his bridge and golf- playing friends. As a presidential candidate, General Eisenhower proclaimed that “TVA will be operated and maintained at maximum efficien- cy. I have a keen appreciation of what it has done and. what it will be able to continue to do in the future.” “Education” But upon election, the former general was quickly given an “education.” In the five years since he assumed office, the Pres- ident has labeled TVA as “creep- ing socialism’; allowed his Ad- ministration to seck to block the Authority's request to self-finance needed expansion facilities; stood on the sidelines during the now- famous Dixon-Yates scandal; and replaced a non-partisan TVA ad- ministrative board with members whose private power interests are well known, The reason for the President’s “switch” is simple — his private power company friends don’t like’ TVA because it is a threat to their monopoly rate structure, The Valley Authority has pro- vided a yardstick for low cost power and—as such—has borne the brunt of a constant industry campaign that seeks to scuttle the entire program, Despite this campaign and the sympathy of the. President, the industry has never been able to hide the great strides made by TVA since its inception in 1933, TVA Created In that year, President Roose- velt signed the TVA Act creating the valley authority. The Act— as conceived by Sen, George Nor- ris (R., Nebr:)—not only provided Printers of The B.C. LUMBER WORKER MDM Ub LIMITED PRINTERS AND LITHOGRAPHERS An Employee Owned Co. 944 RICHARDS STREET MUtual 1-6338 - 6339 low cost power for a seven state area, but supplemented this power with a long-range planning project designed to bring rich economic development to a stagnant area. Norris was never worried about TVA being socialistic. The bill’s original author declared that “the valley is populated by a conserva- tive people who would not have any truck with Marxism in any form. “The proof of TVA’s integrity is that it is about as hard to find an enemy of TVA among them as it is to find teeth in the species of poultry known as the Rhode Island Red.” TVA in practice has more than fulfilled the dreams of Senator Norris and President Roosevelt. Its 20 dams and seyen major steam plants have completely re- developed an area that in 1933 was bad even by depression-day com- parison. Magnificent Results In 1933, there were no more than 225,000 residential electric- ity consumers in the entire area now supplied by TVA power. Today, the Authority supplies power to 1.3 million consumers. Twenty-five years ago, only three percent of the farms in the region used electricity, compar- ed to 95 per cent of the present farms. Per capita income has climbed in the same period from $163 to $1,165. Malaria—which affected 25 per cent of the population and in some communities ran as high as 60 per cent — has almost been completely wiped out. It has been 10 years since a single case has been discovered in the valley. Industry has multiplied and agriculture has prospered — all as a direct result of planning and the wise use of multipurpose fa- cilities, The threat of serious floods has become almost a thing of the past, A blighted area has become one of the nation’s top recreational centres. (From IUD Bulletin) Coldwell Joins A.N.G. OTTAWA (CPA) — M. J. Coldwell, who spent many years in Canada’s Parliament fight- ting for the rights of trade unionists, has joined a union. Mr. Coldwell, who after his March 31 election defeat began a syndicated newspaper column on current affairs, is now a card- carrying member of the American Newspaper Guild (AFL-CIO- CIO) Liberal leader Lester Pearson also joined the A.N.G. when he was writing a similar column. ICFTU Pays Tribute BRUSSELS (CPA) — The fifth anniversary of the East German uprising was the occa- sion of a message to East and Central European workers now under Communist rule, from international Confederation of Free Trade Unions general sec- retary J. H. Oldenbroek. Workers in the Soviet zone of rmany rose against the Com- munist regime there on June 17, 1953. Three years later, on June 28, 1956, workers at Poznan, Po- land, also revolted. The Polish uprising was followed by the na- tion-wide fight for freedom by Hungarian workers in October and November, 1956. Admirable Example Mr. Oldenbroek told the work- ers that these uprisings “are fresh in the memory of the free world, and the courage and sac- rifice workers showed when fac- ing heavy odds are an admirable example of solidarity.” “Low wages and a large-scale spying system are among the main causes of the deep-seated hatred for Communism among the work- ers of Central and Eastern Eur- ope,” he continued. Mr. Oldenbroek said that work- ers’ solidarity is the most effective weapon against oppression.” “We are convinced that the day must come when all workers of the world, all nations, all races will live together in freedom and peace for the benefit of all man- kind,” he concluded. Civil Rights BRUSSELS (CPA) — The International Confederation of Free Trade Unions has asked the Dominican Republic to grant freedom of association, collective bargaining and other trade union rights to workers in that country, In a letter from ICFTU gen- eral secretary J. H. Oldenbroek to Dominican Republic secretary of state for Labor Ramon Aristy, the ICFTU noted that a fact-finding mission had found that freedom of association does not exist in the Dominican Republic. Urged Not Genuine “Indeed the trade unions of the Republic are not genuine trade unions, but are linked on the one hand with the employers and on the other wth the government,” the letter said. Collective bargaining does not exist either. And, the mission found, forced labor was practiced on certain plantations and in rice fields. Mr. Oldenbroek’s letter asked if the forced labor practices had ceased, as the government had promised they would. New Westminster CREDIT UNION DIRECTORY IWA Credit Unions and other Credit Unions supported by IWA Local Unions in B.C. Alberni District Credit Union, 209 Argyle Street, Port Alberni IWA 1-217 Sayings, Broadway & Quebec Streets, Vancouver 10 IWA (N.W.) Credit Union, Room 21, 774 Columbia Street, Local 1-118, IWA (Victoria), 904 Gordon Street, Victoria Chemainus & District Credit Union, Box 299, Chemainus Lake Cowichan and District Credit Union, Lake Cowichan, B.C, Courtenay Credit Union, Box 952 Courtenay Duncan & District Credit Union, Box 1717, Duncan Prince George & District, 1046-4th Avenue, Prince George Nanaimo & District Credit Union, 499 Wallace St., Nanaimo From Page 1 ing themselves out of a job.” Threats Used Jack MacKenzie added, “Van- couver operators are putting state- ments on their notice boards con- taining the veiled threat, ‘If you strike, you'll lose your job.’ They are laying the law down to their workers. If this isn’t intimidation, I don’t know what it is.” The IWA officer said John Bil- lings, president of Forest Indus- trial Relations, “and his cohorts had made the statement that first “Threat” results of the government-super- vised IWA strike vote were “most gratifying.” Reverse True Said MacKenzie, “I would say the reverse is true, The fact that workers have voted 65 per cent to reject the conciliation board recommendation is, in my opin- ion, most gratifying to the union. t is even more gratifying that they made this vote in spite of intimidation from the companies.” Right to prosecute Pond bour Relations Board in regard to the alleged refusal by the s. Early action in the courts is anticipated. As reported to District Secre- tary George Mitchell, who made a personal investigation of the sit- uation, the clash between the crew members and management arose because of the refusal of manage- ment to deal with grievances as required by the contract. On one occasion, the employer had -re- fused to name his representative on an Arbitration Board for which application had been made by the Union. The present work stoppage management to process grievance Union Charges Unfair Actions losa Pine Lumber Co. Ltd. at Monte Lake has been granted Local 1-417 IWA, by the La- dates back to June 10th, on which date the crew members requested an interview with the superintend- ent. The main grievance con- cerned that of one of their num- ber who had been discharged be- cause of his refusal to drop a grievance, it is alleged. While the crew was waiting for the interview, the superintendent, if is alleged, fired all those sup- porting the grievance. This action caused the reference to the La- bour Relations Board. Three bad little boys, Came bouncing a ball (One of their toys), Hit with his head (Called Prov.), who in And rarely the future They came once again It grew heavy as clay Though poor Mun. go! Denying disaster, Then the officer truant THE TRUANTS An Unstable Fable One bright day in fall Each munching a very large cookie, Engrossed in the game known as hookey, ‘The biggest (name: Fed.) The ball to the boot of the second turn, Tossed to small Mun., they reckoned, One dank winter’s day And threw, but the ball was not bouncing: And caused them great pain, t much of the trouncing. They flung it round faster, Too late! strange ball, it had burned them! it (Named “Union”!), pursuant, To their great Teacher returned them! —Johnny Canuck. No Check But Dues DETROIT (CPA) — Mem- bers of the United Auto Work- ers, working without a contract and consequently without the dues checkoff, have been lining up to pay dues in “local after local”, according to SOLIDAR- ITY, the UAW paper. “This display of union solidar- ity came as a surprise to some, but not to AUW secretary-treas- urer Emil Mazey”, Solidarity says in the June 16 edition. Dues Paying Members Mr. Mazey was quoted in the paper as saying “For a number of years, we didn’t have a union shop or a checkoff in GM and Chrys- ler. But we had better than 98 per cent of the workers paying dues.” The UAW paper reports that locals from coast to coast are re- —= -off, Paid dues up to three months in ad- vance, Ford, General Motors and Chrysler all refused to extend their UAW contracts on a day-to- day basis after they expired at the end of May. Bargaining is still in progress. American Motors, however, have agreed to an in- definite extension of the present contract, which according to UAW American Motors depart- ment director Norman Matthews will allow time enough for “satis- factory negotiations of new agree- ments.” Solidarity Charges Meanwhile, Solidarity charges that the big three have made “re~ peated efforts” to provoke a strike. In the first two weeks without contracts, the paper con- tinues, the “most flagrant man- agement assaults were made by Chrysler Corp.” porting volunteer pre-payment of