OFL actions
Continued from page one

That is a massive incursion into
the free collective bargainin
process said I.W.A. National Secon:
Vice President Fred Miron.

“Whether it’s the public sector or
the private sector, no government
has the right to interfere in the col-
lective bargaining process,” said
Brother Miron. “The powers that
Harris wants to give the ‘dispute
resolution commission’ are unprece-
dented. That’s one of the many rea-
sons why the labour movement is
so unanimous in its opposition.”

The Harris government has
slashed and burned spending for
hospitals and education. It has
hacked away at transfer payments
to municipalities and is about to
force a huge amalgamation of juris-
dictions in Metropolitan Toronto.

OFL Vice President and I.W.A.
Local 2693 President Wilf McIntyre
told the Lumberworker that the tar-
get of Harris’ rampage are workers
who are forced to bear the brunt of
cutbacks.

“It’s the rank and file worker
who is getting the screws put to
them,” said Brother McIntyre. “This
is being done so that Harris can
come up with the provincial tax
cuts that the Conservatives cam-
paigned on in the 1995 election.”

Norm Rivard, President of Local
1-2995 said that the Harris tax cuts
will result in the downgrading of
education and that Ontario’s youth
will be hit the hardest.

“Harris is being criminal in cut-
ting back on the education system
which the Conservatives said they
would not touch in the 1995 elec-
tion,” said Rivard.

In a press release prior to the
emergency convention, OFL Presi-
dent Wilson said that “the legisla-
tion (Bill 136) will kill jobs and
reduce services in communities,
hospitals and schools. Thousands of
broader public sector workers will
be thrown out of work in this drive
to privatize every public service in
the province. This means private
companies will control services such
as water and sewage. There will be
no standards and zero accountabili-
ty to the taxpayers of this province.”

“The purpose of this whole com-
bative exercise with unions in
Ontario is to try and break unions
and lower wages and benefits,” he
said.

“All this to pay for the Tory tax
cut by pulling $4 billion out of
Ontario services at the expense of
workers and consumers. This legis-
lation will not save Ontario taxpay-
ers one cent.”

The bill calls for a “Labour
Relations Transition Commission”
to “encourage best practices that
ensure the delivery of quality and
effective public services that are
affordable for taxpayers.”

The OF Lcharges that there would
be a legal requirement for the vari-

2)

wy)

¢ TAKING TO THE STREETS to protest the Harris government were (I. to r.) Local 1000’s Yvon Rochon, I.W.A. National
President Dave Haggard, Local 2693 First Vice President John Lorenowich, National Representative Bob
Navarretta, and Local 1000 Financial Secretary Mike McCarter. In background (1. to r.) are Local 1-2995 President
Norm Rivard, Local 1-2995 Financial Secretary Damien Roy and Local 2693 Second Vice President Lloyd Szkaley.

ous levels of government to con-
tract out existing jobs to the non-
union sector which can deliver lower
labour costs.

National I.W.A. President Dave
Haggard, who was present at the
emergency convention, said that
Bill 136 is “all about deunioniza-
tion in the province.”

“The Harris government consists
of a bunch of rotten characters who
have absolutely no respect for work-
ing people or working communi-
ties,” he said. “Whatever they are
dishing out in the public sector will
eventually hit our members in the
private sector as well. That’s why
Harris has to be stopped in his
tracks.”

I.W.A. Local union officers and
members from Local 2693, 1-2995,
1000, 700 and 500 attended the

emergency convention. which
formed a plan of action to fight Bill

136. Local 1-700 President Ron
Diotte said that the fight against
the Harris government is one that
unions in both private and public
sectors are committed to.

The delegates marched about 3
kilometers to Queen’s Park to deliv-
er a public proclamation against
the legislation.

Provincial NDP labour critic
David Christopher took that procla-
mation on to the provincial parlia-
ment when it opened on August 18.

The policy paper endorsed by the
OFL includes the education of OFL
members on the implications of Bill
136 and the Teachers’ bill, and the
insistence there must be democrat-
ic input on government policies
that affect workers.

The OFL plans to continue to
reach out to communities and seek
cooperation with the hundreds of
organizations that are opposed to

the Harris government for reasons
well documented.

Unions members will work to
lobby provincial and municipal
politicians over the issues of cut-
backs and forced amalgamations.

The OFL will take out radio ads
and newspaper ads across Ontario.

The public sector unions such an
CUPE and OPSEU may initiate
work to rule programs and rotating
strikes as part of the campaign.
That will affect over 500,000 work-
ers.

At the rally NDP leader Howard
Hampton attacked the government
for its attempt to shorten the legis-
lature and ram the legislation
through by the end of the year.

“This goes to the fundamentals
of democracy, and we need to be
ensured that people across the
province understand that,” he said.

Pacific workers delay strike action

I.W.A. CANADA members who
work for Pacific Forest Products
operations on Vancouver Island are
waiting for a proposed transfer of
the company’s assets to TimberWest
and Doman Industries Ltd. after the
latter companies announced that
they are purchasing portions of
Pacific. Meanwhile, strike action
against Pacific, which refuses to get
back into association bargaining,
has been put on hold pending the
takeovers which are expected to be
completed in October and November,
following public hearings and share-
holder voting.

The union has met with both
TimberWest and Doman to iron out
what the new collective agreement
will look like. Pacific operations
acquired by both takeover compa-

nies will be reaccredited to FIR and
the terms of the recently ratified
Coast Master Agreement (see story
page one) will apply to all of those
operations.

It is agreed that local issues will
be referred to an “alternate dispute
resolution” mechanism and later on
to arbitration if necessary.

In mid-July, I.W.A. Canada Locals

1-80 and 1-85 held the strike vote in
which 89% of voting members
approved strike action, if necessary,
against Pacific.
On July 21, I.W.A. National
President Dave Haggard announced
that “we clearly have a mandate to
strike.” :

“But because of the pending sales
of the company’s operations and the
track record of the prospective buy-
ers, we have decided to hold off on
taking strike action,” he added.

To send a clear message of sup-
port for workers at Pacific, the union’s
Provincial Negotiating Committee
authorized the doubling of strike
pay should that occur against Pacific.

After weeks of trying to get Pacific
to respond to the union’s bargaining
demands, the I.W.A. finally forced
Pacific to sit down at the table. It
gave the company the same 35
demands it gave to Forest Industrial
Relations in May of this year and
added another 11 demands as “local
issues.”

have ever seen from a company and
Pacific should be ashamed of them-
selves,” said I.W.A. National Third
Vice President Dave Tones, who was
at the meeting. “Managers have a
lot better things to do, like run
sawmills, rather than be paraded
out like puppets by their colleague
from the head office.”

The Pacific representatives, head-
ed by a vice-president of Human
Resources, said they wanted “me
too” agreements. The I.W.A. present-
ed their own version of a “me too”
back. It said that Pacific operations
would have to be tied into any poten-
tial labour dispute with the rest of
the forest industry. The company
rejected that and also rejected a
mechanism to solve local issues.

Local 1-85 President Larry
Rewakowsky said that Pacific and
its lawyer has “probably cost our
local union more than any other
company we are involved with.”

“Negotiations is the time for the

~ union and the company to address

outstanding issues and things like
contracting out, but this company is
doing everything it can to avoid
meaningful dialogue.”

“Pacific is one of the worst compa-
nies around in terms of labour rela-
tions, and you don’t have to look any
further than the Sooke operation for
that,” said Brother Routley. “They
closed that operation and we’ve been

At a meeting held in Nanaimo on

g July 11, the company made a mock-

2 ery of the bargaining process and

= had its management from each oper-

z ation recite an identical position

which originated from Pacific’s head-
quarters.

“It was the most offensive thing I

fighting for the 100 employees who
lost their jobs ever since.”

In mid-July the company
announced an increase in the annu-
al allowable cut in its Sooke opera-
tion, which the union thinks will be
directed to non-union contractors.

e At the emergency convention is Local 2693 President and OFL Vice
President Wilf McIntyre (r.). At the podium is OFL President Gord Wilson.

LUMBERWORKER/SEPTEMBER 1997/3