A

Call for the conference had been
issued prior to the announcement
of the appointment of Commis-
sioner Sloan as a mediator. It
was originally intended that the
delegates should further advise the
District Policy Committee with
regard to steps required to imple-
ment the strike mandate given by
the government-supervised strike
vote when peace talks were
wrecked by the employers.

On the preceding Thursday,
advice had been received by the
Premier to the effect that the
operators had flatly rejected all
peace overtures. They refused to
abandon their attempt to force
the terms of the Conciliation
Board’s majority report on the
Union, thereby lowering the con-
tract standards,

Hon. Mr. Bennett, then an-
nounced the appointment of For-
estry Advisor Gordon MacGregor
Sloan, as a Royal Commissioner
to report to the Government on
recommended terms of settlement,
Full Report Given
The extensive report submitted
by District President Joe Morris
6n behalf of the District Policy
Committee was followed with
close interest by a gathering fully
representative of all sections of
the lumber industry.

The numerous questions re-
vealed that on some points a great
deal of inaccurate information had
been in circulation.

Surprising Turn

When confronted with the sur-
prising turn of events the dele-
gates addressed themselves to
consideration of plans required in
connection with the Royal Com-
mission enquiry.

Decisions reached mainly pro-
vided for the presentation of the
Union's case before the Commis.
sioner, and the referral of deci-
sions regarding the right to take
strike action to the District Policy
Committee.

When the situation had been
thoroughly examined, it was gen-
erally agreed that the unprece-
dented circumstances surrounding
this year’s negotiations required
different tactics and timetable than
in former years.

Poor Climate

It was shown that the Union
had been exposed to an unfayor-
able climate caused by the em-
ployers’ campaign to discredit
trade unions and their demands.
An analysis was made of strike
situations which had preceded the
IWA strike vote. New light was
shed on the influences at work
just prior to and during the sup-
ervised strike vote,

DENTAL
PLATES

40:

The Dental Association has for-

bidden Dr. R. Llewellyn Douglas

(Old Doc) from announcing

Publicly that he is willing and
blo to

WHY
PAY
MORE ?

Dr. R. Llewellyn Douglas

712 Robson St. Vi 1, B.C,
(Comer of Granville
1 : 1-4022,

Meas ae

BER WORK

. LUM

ER

_IWA Conference
Endorses Action

One hundred and two delegates attending the IWA Dis-
trict Delegated Conference in Vancouver August 3rd unani-
: mously expressed complete confidence in the conduct of
negotiations and the actions of the Policy and Negotiating
Committees to date. This followed the submission of a full

‘report reviewing all developments during the course of this
years negotiations by District President Joe Morris.

Conference Briefs

@ Conduct of negotiations
on behalf of the Union was
given unanimous approval.
@ Negotiating Committee
in consultation with the Pol-
icy Committee was authorized
to present Union’s case to
Commissioner Sloan, acting
in his capacity of mediator,
and await outcome of such
mediation,
@ Steps that might be
deemed advisable to retain
and exercise the right to take
strike action were left in the
hands of the Policy Commit-
tee.
@ Plan of co-ordination
with Pacific Northwest States
Negotiating Committee was
approved,
@ Special consideration at
close of general conference
was given Interior negotia-
tions,
—____

The point was made by report-
ing officers that the employers had
succeeded in mobilizing a suffi-
cient weight of public opinion
against the Union to make it
necessary to proceed with deliber-
ation. If strike action became in-
evitable, by reason of the em-
ployers’ provocative actions, it
was contended that the Union
should choose its own time and
place, for the fight.

Government Intervention

The IWA could not ignore the
fact that a considerable number
of lumber workers had been in-
fluenced by the employers’ propa-
ganda, and the fear of unemploy-
ment. It was also evident that a
strong public sentiment had been
developed in favour of government
intervention in the event of strike
action. Goyernment intervention
could, under the circumstances,
take such form as to effectively
cripple the fighting strength of the
Union for future occasions, it was
claimed.

Interior Negotiations

Consideration was given the
Interior negotiations. It was
stated that these were receiving
equal attention because of the
bearing on coast negotiations,

At the close of the general con-
ference, the Interior delegates met
with the District Policy Commit-
tee and District Officers to co-or-
dinate more closely the activities
in the Northern and Southern In-
terior regarding contract negotia-
tions,

Approval was given the plan of
co-operation between District No.
1, and the Pacific Northwest
States Negotiating Committee. It
was reported that the joint com-
mittee established was engaged in
linking the work of both sections
more closely as one common
struggle.

Then there was the Indian who
got “beaten-up” in his wigwam.
His suffering was intense.

* * *

Hopelessly snarled in a traffic
jam, the wife asked: “What do I
do now?”

“I don’t know,” her husband
answered, “But I’m sure if you
climb into the back seat you can

Pondosa
Dispute
Settled —

Dispute between Pondosa
Pine Lumber Co. Ltd. and IWA
Local 1-417, Salmon Arm, B.C.,
which resulted in a two-months’
stoppage of work at the Plant of
the above named Company at
Monte Lake has been settled.

The Union and Management
met in Vancouver recently and
reached terms of agreement which
are mutually satisfactory.

It was planned that production
would begin on Tuesday, August
19th. All employees at Pondosa
Pine Lumber Co. Ltd. are re-
quested to immediately contact
the Company or the Union for

further information.

IWA DISTRICT OFFICERS Ist. Vice-president, Joe Madden; President,
Joe Morris; Secretary-treasurer, George Mitchell, during the District Dele-
gated Conference, August 3, in the Stry Hall, Vancouver.

The preliminary copy of the
final report was strongly criti-
cized by several delegates as be-
ing weak and general.

Executive vice president Wil-
liam Dodge of the Canadian La-
bor Congress termed it a “pale
imitation” of the group reports,
and urged that — the govern-
ment act on the basis of recom-
mendations made in the groups
reports; and — the government
recognize the need for action im-
mediately.

Management Opposed

The majority of delegates, rep-
resenting management organiza-
tions like the Canadian Cham-
ber of Commerce, the Canadian
Manufacturers’ Association and
the Canadian Construction Asso-
ciation, insisted that government
subsidies were not necessary or
desirable and that much of the
job in promoting winter employ-
ment should be done by “pri-
vate initiative.”

George S. Mooney, executive
director of the Canadian Fed-
eration of Mayors and Munici-
palities, however, insisted that
the preliminary copy of the final
report was “insipid, ineffective
and inaccurate,” and called for
government subsidies in the form
of tax and tariff concessions and
double depreciation allowances.

CLC Brief
On the first day of the con-
ference, the Canadian Labor

Congress presented a compre-
hensive brief to the delegates.
The CLC was represented by ex-
ecutive vice president William
Dodge, general vice president
George Burt, and Andy Andras,
director of the Legislation and
Government Employees depart-
ment of the Congress, B.C. vice
president Joe Morris was unable
to attend.

The Congress submission,
read by Mr. Dodge, pointed out
that the extent — and cost — of
seasonal unemployment should
be precisely determined.

Tf a figure of 140 thousand
were taken (the real number
might be anywhere between 100
and 200 thousand, the CLG

figure it out.”

noted) and each of the 140 thou-

INSTRUCTION IN INDUSTRIAL FIRST AID

available through Correspondence Courses leading to Industrial
First Aid Certificates approved by the Workmen's Compensation
Board of B.C, Also Correspondence Course In Timekeeping arid

Basic Accident Prevention,
THE INDUSTRIAL FIRST AID ATTENDANTS ASSN. OF B.C.

180 West Hastings Street

Vancouver 3, B.C.

Labour Urges
Better Plan

OTTAWA (CPA) — Labor Minister Michael Starr in
his closing remarks to the National Winter Employment
Conference here promised action on “feasible” recommend-
ations brought forward by the 100-odd representatives of
labor, industry and government.

sand were idle 500 hours at $1
per hour, then winter unemploy-
ment was costing Canada “some-
thing of the order of $70 mil-
lions.”

The CLC said it stressed finan-
cial cost because “one way or
another, seasonal unemployment
can be taken from the scene, and
the human problem thereby more
or less satisfactorily solved.”

Once the facts are known and
“efficient and productive” rather
than a “crude” method of solv-
ing the problem decided upon,
what steps should be taken?

The CLC brief suggested that:
— the economy is “sufficiently
controllable even in its present
form to allow seasonal unem-
ployment to be wiped out”;

— not enough is known about the
details of winter joblessness, so
study is needed;

— “seasonal discrimination” is
an approach worthy of study.

The government should “not
lose one moment in deciding, and
announcing, what it is going to
do,” the CLC stressed. Unem-
ployment next winter will be as
high or higher than last, the
submission said, and immediate
steps are therefore urgently
needed.

“All last winter, the govern-
ment was urging the rest of us
to ‘Do it Now’; now it is our
turn to urge the government to
adopt, and act on, its own slo-
gan,” the submission concluded.

35-Hour
Week Up

MONTREAL (CPA) — To-
bacco workers in the United
States and Canada will ask a
35-hour week as a result of
increases in man-hour produc-
tivity brought about by new
machinery, according to Tobac-
co Workers International Union
president John O’Hare.

The union held an executive
board meeting here recently.

Demands for the 35-hour week
without a loss in take-home pay
will be made first in factories
where automation has been in-
troduced to a high degree. Tobac-
co employees now work 40-hour
weeks in organized shops in both
countries.

The union will hold its quad-

rennial convention here’in 1960.

Welfare
Program

Studied

MONTREAL (CPA) — The
Canadian Welfare Council
which met here a few days ago
called on the Tory federal gov~
ernment to set up a Royal Com-
mission to investigate the whole
social security field in Canada.

The Commission should
recommend many improvements
in present social security scales,
close gaps and institute better
federal - provincial co-ordinated
efforts, the body said.

The Canadian Welfare Council
represents Canada’s social service
agencies. The request for a Royal
Commission was a major new pol-
icy decision taken at the conven-
tion.

Minimum Income Urged

An “assured minimum income
below which nobody should be
allowed to fall,” was demanded.
A suggestion from Quebec repre-
sentatives that this standard be- set
up and kept up by the federal
government, was defeated.

The Royal Commission, the
Welfare Council said, should not
only study ways and means of
increased federal-provincial co-
operation, but should also probe
the possibility of foreign agree-
ments which would cover immi-
grants to Canada, and Canadians
in other countries.

Extend UIC Benefits

Labor representative K. B, An-
dras of Toronto told delegates
that unemployment insurance
benefits should be extended as
part of a complete review of the
Unemployment Insurance Act.
UIC staff, he said, is sometimes
poorly trained, and there is often
“poor quality of treatment at the
counter.”

The present universal old-age
pension at 70 should be kept, and
a parliamentary committee should
study the possibility of introducing
it at age 65 in some cases, the
Council said.

Other recommendations by
the Welfare Council included:

—A broadly representative
group of competent persons set
up by the Federal government,
who would keep Canada’s social
welfare program under constant
scrutiny; :

—A new program of aid for
dependent families without a
means test, when the bread-
winner dies;

—A “cash sickness benefit
program” to make up loss of
income while sick; this to sup-
plement the federal - provincial
hospital insurance program; and

—Federal financial aid to
social welfare research, social
worker training, and dissemina-
tion of information,