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[NG THEIR BALLOTS at MacMillan Bloedel’s White Pine Division in Vancouver were members of IWA-CANADA

1-217. Contract was accepted by 76% majority on the coast of B.C.

Union approves B.C. contract
IWA membership ratifies three year agreement

After four and a half months of frus-
trating negotiations with the B.C. for-
est industry, IWA-CANADA has
reached agreements with major em-
ployer associations in the province’s
coastal and interior regions. Those
collective agreements, which have
been ratified, are a welcome relief for
the union which was almost pushed
into widespread strike situations by
stubborn employers.

As this issue of the Lumberworker
goes to press the majority of union
members in the province have voted
in favour of a three year agreement
which will see wage increases of 8
percent over the duration of the con-
tract. In addition to the percentage in-
ereases the union negotiated
1 cash payments for all three

of the contract. The first year

cial bargaining agent for

ing settlements reached in the second
quarter of this year go, the average
wage increase in the private sector
was only 1.7%. In the first quarter of
the year, they were only 0.8 percent.

Since May 2 the union met the in-
dustry on 43 days until the agreement
the first agreement was reached.

The first region of the province to
settle was the Coast where a tentative
agreement with Forest Industrial Re-
lations, the employers association.
was reached on September 17. A rati-
fication vote in all the coast locals
was subsequently held and on Octo-
ber 11, the union announced that 76%
of those members who voted were in
favour of the agreement. Over 14,000
IWA members work in this region of
the province.

On October 24 the union ratified an
agreement with the southern interior’s
Interior Forest Labour Relations Asso-
ciation and on October 8 a similiar
agreement was reached in the north-
em interior with the Council of North-
ern Interior Forest Employment
Relations. Unfortunately negotiations
with some independent companies
have not gone as well. On October 9
the union served strike notice on
Northwood Pulp and Timber which
employs about 725 members in five
operations. Then on October 17, con-
tract talks with Weldwood Canada
broke off. Both companies have re-
fused to recognize the IWA as the offi-
logging truck

drivers that supply their mills. The

union has certified about 30 drivers
between the two operations.

THUNDER BAY LOCAL
LARGE AND DIVERSE

Large logging and sawmilling
operations are the mainstay
for Local 2693, but it has
branched out and diversified
its membership in the Thun-
der Bay area. Pictured is a
worker at Unitized Manufac-
turing Ltd.

FEATURE STORY Page 8

Harvey Arcand, negotiating commit-
tee chairman for the northern interior
says the union is determined to get an
agreement for the truckers before an
agreement is reached in the mills. The
union, he says, is not prepared to
spend large amounts of resources
fighting for recognition in the labour
courts.

Overall the wage and benefits pat-
tern for the province was set with ne-
gotiations on the coast.

The union was able to negotiate an
agreement, in the form of a Letter of
Understanding, that will offer IWA
members first shot at “New and
Evolving Work” with forest compa-
nies. This agreement will offer new
job opportunites for union members
to gain access to new and evolving
work such as those new jobs to be
created by the Forest Renewal Plan,
second growth harvesting, and value
added production.

“The new and evolving work issue
is a very important one for our union,”
says Brother Stoney. “We want to
make sure that new work opportuni-
ties are offered to our members and
now the companies have committed
themselves to working with the IWA
to see that this happens.”

One of the major issues that the
union had to address was that of the
IWA Forest Industry pension plan’s
unfunded liability. To deal with that
the industry has agreed to lump sum
contributions of about $43 million this
year and next. Those lump sum con-
tributions work out to about 44 cents

Continued on page two

New forest
act coming
to Ontario

The province of Ontario is gearing
up to change the way things are done
in the woods. For some time now the
New Democratic government has
been working towards some new leg-
islation governing the long-term fu-
ture of the forests.

IWA-CANADA, with five geographi-
cal local unions and over 12,000 mem-
bers in Ontario, has been an
important part of the policy frame-
work process which has eventually
led to the introduction of Bill 171, the
Crown Forest Sustainability Act.

The Act, introduced to the legisla-
ture on July 1, 1994 is now going
through clause be clause study by the
standing committee and is expected
to be passed in April 1995.

IWA-CANADA National Second
Vice-President Fred Miron says the
new forestry bill, introduced by Natur-
al Resources Minister Howard Hamp-
ton, replaces the Crown Timber Act
and is the first change made in over 40
years.

“We need to toughen up forest prac-
tices and, at the same time, make sure
that we protect the long-term viability
of the forest industry,” says Brother
Miron.

Upon the announcement Minister
Hampton said that: “We need new leg-
islation to guarantee the long-term
health of forest ecosystems and also
to make sure that we sustain commu-
nities, industries and jobs that depend
on our forests for their economic sta-
bility.

The minister recognizes that the
forest industry produces $10 billion
worth of production annually in the
province. There are over 175,000 jobs
connected to the industry. Over 50
communities are dependent on the in-
dustry, the majority of those being in
northern Ontario.

The following are key elements of
the new legislation:

° stronger compliance measures
and tougher penalties for non-compli-
ance, including maximum fines of $1
million for severe environmental dam-
age;

© forest regeneration to meet new
improved standards;

e the establishment of local citi-
zens committees to ensure that peo-
ple in forest communities have more
say;

e forest management for other val-
ues such as water, wildlife, fisheries,
vegetation and heritage values;

e independent audits of forestry
activities.

The new Act will establish a new
“Forest Renewal Trust Fund” to en-
sure that there will be increased
spending for second growth forests,

Brother Miron says that the new
fund is essential. The monies collect-

Continued on page three