¢ New Democratic Member of Parliament Joy Langan addressed labour crowd
during protest rally.

UI protest

Continued from page three

She then mocked Mazankowski's
statements that the federal mini-bud-
get is intended "to reposition the
country for the future global econom-
ic reality."

"Do you know what that means to
you and I today? It means positioning
more people on welfare, more on un-
employment, and more people at the
food banks."

McGuire said the government is at-
tacking social programs which is not a
solution for creating jobs in Canada.
She also said that the mini-budget,

which freezes federal public sector
wages for two years, is not merely a
mini-budget - it is an election platform
designed to make sure (the Mulroney
government's) right wing cronies are
satisfied that their agenda is strong
enough to take on the Reform Party.

Brother Gordie Westrand said the
"labour movement will not stand back
and let those (unemployed) people,
who do not have a way to fight back,
be beat on."

"We're here to give Mulroney a mes-
sage and the message is, we will go to
the streets, and ....we're going out to
the communities and when we finish,
Mulroney is going to be part of the un-
employed of this country," said Wes-
trand.

Monument to fallen workers
unveiled by Italian-Canadians

On Saturday, November 7 at about 4:00 in the afternoon, an esti-
mated 3,000 people took part in an historic event in the town of
Woodbridge, a community just north of Toronto.

The dream of thousands of workers of Italian origin became a
reality, thanks to the hard and diligent work of individuals and or-
ganizations under the chairmanship of Mr. Sergio Tagliavini. At the
intersection of highway 7 and Islington, in the heart of Wood-
bridge, visible from this busy intersection full of life and activities,
enhanced by reverent music of the flowing Humber River, that
symbolizes life itself, now stands a magnificent monument in the
memory of those workers of Italian origin that left home one day
to provide for their family and never came back. As the sun was
going down behind the hill and when the flag went down unveiling
this beautiful piece of art in a quasi-magic atmosphere enriched by
appropriate music provided by a live band of young people, tears
were in everybody's eyes.

As a trade unionist I felt really good about the labour movement
in general and the IWA in particular, for the hard work and com-
mitment toward safety and health at the work place in a tremen-
dous challenge to make this type of ceremony a thing of the past to
the point that we can proudly tell our children that these are things
of the past and that they never have to experience these tragic
consequences in an attempt to earn a living.

_I can't help to reflect the importance of this symbolic gesture in
recognizing the importance of the ultimate sacrifice offered by
these, most of the time, unsung heroes, for the building and
strengthening of our Country and the welfare of all of us.

It is indeed a great achievement for workers in general and Ital-
ian-Canadians in particular. In fact a committee is now being
formed to create a similar project for all workers and we are hop-
ing to erect another monument around one of the Government
buildings and for that we already have a commitment both from
the NDP Government and the Minister of Labour to assist in this
project.

We are all very hopeful that in the near future this can become
another reality and give all of us a meaningful place to go on April
28th, Labour’s Day of Mourning, and reflect on our tremendous re-
sponsibility toward a safer workplace for all workers.

ROBERT NAVARETTA
National Business Representative
IWA-CANADA

Canada and
Free Trade
With Mexico

Edited by
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This attractive and readable book is the ideal introduction
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$15.95 188 pages

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smu Sc

24/LUMBERWORKER/DECEMBER, 1992