CONVENTION

0K93

e NDP leader Roy Romanow

Saskatchewan Premier
addresses convention

Saskatchewan’s New Democratic Premier Roy
Romanow took special occasion to address the IWA-
CANADA National Convention in Saskatoon. He ad-
dressed some of the problems of the forest industry
in Saskatchewan and across Canada.

In Saskatchewan, the forest industry is the sec-
ond largest manufacturing sector. Romanow said
that in 1991 the value of Saskatchewan forest prod-
ucts including pulp, paper, lumber, posts, poles, ties
and fuel wood) reached $225 million. He said that in
the province there are over 300 companies scat-
tered across the commercial forest belt directly em-
ploying over 2,300 people.

The Premier said that forestry jobs are the social
and economic; backbone of 31 Saskatchewan com-
munities.

“I want to tell you as Premier of the Province of
Saskatchewan this (the forest industry) is an eco-
nomic activity that we want to support and to main-
tain, enhance, and improve to make sure that the
level of economic generation and the spin-offs of a
good quality of life are not only maintained but in-
creased.”

He said that large softwood tree species are be-
coming scarcer due to over harvesting in the past,
and that the depletion of resources threaten the
economic future and stability of the industry.

Romanow said that forest products manufactur-
ers in Canada and workers in the industry are re-
sponding to demands to protect the environment.
He cited statistics which say 30 years ago, less than

° Following her speech to IWA delegates NDP federal leader Audrey McLaughlin gets mobbed by

reporters during election campaign.

NDP’s Audrey McLaughlin lays out
issues affecting working people

Audrey McLaughlin, Canada’s first woman to lead
a federal political party, addressed the IWA National
Convention 18 days before the October 25th federal
election in which the New Democratic Party won
nine seats federally.

Despite being last in the polls among major politi-
cal parties, Ms. McLaughlin stuck to her guns to lay
out some important issues for IVA members.

“The issues that you face, like so many other
Canadians are the issues of jobs and the future of
Canada’s social programs, especially Medicare,”
said the speaker. “These are tough times for your
union as well. In the last decade you’ve lost about
one-third of your membership.”

She said since the Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agree-
ment was signed, Canada has lost about 280 jobs a
day.

“I am proud to be with you here today because
your union was one of the first to recognize the im-

3% of pulp and paper mills expenses were related to.
environmental protection. Today that number is in
excess of 12% and will be an estimated 35% in the
next few years.

In March of 1992 the province signed the Canada
Forest Accord, which he said represents consensus
among governments, public agencies, industry,
labour, and aboriginal people in the setting of prin-
ciple of goals for the industry.

Since then the provincial government has worked
with the Federal Government in the development of
an integrated forest resource management plan.
Part of that plan is looking at Forest Management
License Agreements (FMLA’s) and using the hard-
wood species more fully in fibreboard and pulp in-
dustries.

The Premier said recent FMLA’s between the gov-
ernment and Weyerhaeuser, L & M Wood Products,
and North Saskatchewan Forest Products indicate
this adjustment.

Romanow said that the Canada-US. F.T.A. has not
helped the Canadian forest industry sell its prod-
ucts into the U.S. and “that while they talk a great
game of free trade the history of the United States
has been to practice protectionism.”

“What we cannot do is simply give up the control
and sovereignty of our country and our province’s
under the simple rubric of free trade,” said Ro-
manow.

The U.S. countervails on Canadian lumber are an
example of how the FTA has failed to stop protec-
tionism, said the speaker.

“Duties, export taxes and other penalties arising
from these senseless trade disputes cost Canadian
industries hundreds of millions of dollars and tens
of thousands of jobs,” he concluded.

pact of the Canada-U.S. trade deal and of NAFTA on
restricting our ability to use our own resources for
value-added processing and creating more jobs for
Canadians.”

“Under the FTA the softwood lumber sector has
had much or more harassment, as you well know,
from the United States as any other sector,” said
McLaughlin. “The U.S., plain and simple, wants to
destroy our softwood lumber industry (and) wants
us to export logs. New Democrats say no way, these
trade deals don’t work.”

McLaughlin said that the Liberals and the Reform
Party both support free trade.

“If you have any doubt about where the Liberals
really stand, I want you to consider the fact that
they (the Liberals) had a chance to defeat NAFTA in
the House of Commons (and) 37 Liberals stayed
home. We could have defeated NAFTA but the Liber-
als chose not to show up. It just shows that the Lib-
erals will say anything to get elected but we can’t
count on them.”

The speaker said that the FTA and NAFTA thre:
en the future of jobs and social programs. She . )
since the FTA has signed social programs have be
harmonized downwards to be more like the United
States. Programs like unemployment insurance,
health care, and the family allowance system have
suffered.

“The FTA and NAFTA have sections in them that
open the door to American insurance companies
and hospital chains.”

McLaughlin said that since the Conservatives
took power in 1984, over $8 million a day has been
taken out of the nation’s health care system.

The Reform Party’s position is that the Canada
Health Care Act should be scrapped and authority
for health care should be turned over to the
provinces, which will be allowed to create a two-
tiered medical system.

McLaughlin said the Liberals will not defend
Medicare either and will not rescind federal legisla-
tion that have upped the costs of patent drugs (0
an estimated $7 billion over 17 years).

“That hits directly at our health care system. Th:
is a law that stands in the interests of multi-national
corporations and their profits over the interests of
the average Canadian.”

“Friends our movement has always believed that
people come first. CCF and NDP members of parlia-
ment have fought long and hard for working People,
for old age pensions, and family allowances, and
Medicare, and unemployment insurance and for the
interest of Canadian voices who too rarely are
heard. Make no mistake, the Liberals and the Tories
and the Reform Party stand together. They have
never been, they are not now and they will never be
parties who act in the interests of working people.”

12/LUMBERWORKER/DECEMBER, 1993