¢ TALKING TO THE MEDIA with new I.W.A. members is Nati
1-3567 member Donna Bell from Snoweap Lumber Ltd.
Naya Canadian Natural Spring Water in Revelstoke,

ORGANIZING RESULTS.
FEATURED AT ANNUAL

1.W.A. CONVENTION

This year 183 |.W.A. union

delegates assembled in
Vancouver to hear the
results of past year’s
organizing efforts.

PAGES 17-25

ional Union President Dave Haggard. To his right is Local

in Abbotsford, B.C. and on his left is Ryan McIntosh from
B.C. See page twenty-one for convention organizing report.

Past year is one of roughest
yet for B.C.’s forest industry

his past year has been a

notoriously bad one for

the I.W.A. in British

Columbia’s forest indus-

try. Hardest hit has been

the coastal region of the
province, which is more dependent
on Asian markets and has less quota
undef the Canada - U.S. Softwood
Lumber Agreement.

Facing higher structural wood
costs, depressed markets and grow-
ing boycott pressures orchestrated
by radical environmentalist groups
(see article this page), employment
on the Coast has dropped radically
over the past two years and more
severely in the last year.

In the Interior of the province,
higher wood costs, restricted access
to the U.S. market, lack of pro-
fitability and lack of markets in
Asia have all contributed to perma-
nent closures anit curtailments
and tempor: layoffs.

Accordi ante Council of Forest
Industries, an employer ‘oup rep-
resenting both unionized and non-
union employers, there have been
between 13,000 - 15,000 direct and
indirect jobs lost in the province due
to the slump in the industry.

Most of those job losses are tem-
porary and should return when mar-
jets rebound.

“It has changed for the worst for
our union as a whole in the last
year,” said I,W.A. CANADA National
President Dave Haggard. “Tempo-
rary closures have turned into indef-

jnite ones. Work shifts at mills and

camps have taken roller coaster
rides up and down. Things have
really been unpredictable.”

“We have never seen a downturn
in the lumber markets last for so
long and sink so low,” he added. “So
far the B.C. government has acted
to help the industry but more has to
be done.”

The NDP government has de-
creased stumpage across the
puceauce by $450 million ($250 mil-

lion in policy changes in June and
$250 million in regular stumpage
adjustments) from October of 1997
to October 1998. Average stumpage

rates dropped by $13.29 per cubic
meter on the Coast (38.4%) and by
$11.02 per cubic meter in the Inte-
rior (36%).
~ InJune, Premier Clark announced
$600 million in stumpage reduc-
tions over three years. In April the
government announced cuts in For-
est Practices Code red tape which,
when fully put into place, will result
in annual cost savings of over $300
million per year.

The loss of Japanese and other
Asian markets have had a tremen-
dous ripple effect throughout the

Continued on page two

[.W.A. fights against boycotts

Threatened by a proposed boycott
of B.C. forest products by U.S. com-
anies, I.W.A. CANADA has fought
ack hard against a coalition of
environmental extremists.

As a result of swift union action,
several of the 27 companies named
in the green groups’ December 8
New York Times ad have backed off.
Others have been given a chance to
clarify their positions.

1.W.A. CANADA launched its
campaign following publication of
the newspaper ad by the Coastal
Rainforest Coalition, including
Greenpeace, National Resources
Defence Council and the Rainforest
Action Network.

The ad says the 27 companies had
agreed to “shift away from old-

growth,” a policy that would under-
mine the forest sector throughout
Canada. Across the country almost
70 ‘percent of standing volumes are

old-growth”; in B.C. the figure is
about 80 percent.

“What Greenpeace alleges these
companies support amounts to a
boycott of B.C. products and implies
a boycott of Canadian forest prod-
ucts. We take that as a serious
threat,” says I.W.A. CANADA
national president Dave Haggard.
“If we stop harvesting old growth
timber, we're effectively out of busi-
ness and we've lost many thousands
of jobs.”

In response to the ad, the I.W.A.
launched a two-part campaign. First

Continued on page thirty-six

Union brings
in over 2,400
hew members

Recent organizing successes in
the Industrial, Wood and Allied
Workers of Canada were appar-
ent at this year’s annual conven-
tion held in Vancouver. During
the convention’s opening day on
September 14, National Union
President Dave Haggard joined
with some new union members
to talk about the I.W.A’s organiz-
ing and growth strategy.

“Our strategy, approved by last
year’s convention means that we
have organized on a greater scale
than ever before,” said Brother
Haggard. “Many of these new
members work outside of our tra-
ditional base in the forest sec-
tor.”

“These workers know that to

gain respect in the workplace
and a better deal from employ-
ers, they need the support of a
strong, unified union,” added
Haggard. “We believe they
deserve the same kind of repre-
sentation that our members in
the forest sector have enjoyed for
many years.”

As of convention time, recent
organizing efforts had added over
2,400 members to the I.W.A.

“We will keep on organizing,
both within the traditional forest
sector and beyond,” said Hag-
gard. “Any worker deserves
respect and support on the job,
regardless of the industry or sec-
tor.”

Following Haggard’s speech to
the national convention (see page
17), he invited five new union
members on stage to introduce to
the delegates. The new members
were from Naya Natural Spring
Water in Revelstoke. B.C., (Local
1-417); International House of
Pancakes, in the B.C. Lower
Mainland (Local 1-3567); Delta
Play playground manufacturers
in Delta, B.C. (Local 1-3567);
Fabrene Inc., a plastics wrap
manufacturer in Richmond, B.C.
(Local 2171); and Snowcap Lum-
ber, a value-added woods product
manufacturer in Abbotsford, B.C.
(Local 1-3567).

After the introductions, Hag
gard and the new members held
a press conference with national
and provincial radio, television
present.

Haggard told the media that
the majority of the new members
brought in were from B.C. where
the union has more local unions
and is able to reach out. The
1.W.A. is also making new inroads
into Quebec, Saskatchewan and
Ontario.

He said that, across the coun-
try, more workers are turning to
the I.W.A. as they realize that it
is a national union that is con-
trolled by the rank and file mem-
bership. ‘i

The union president said that,
although the I.W.A. will not

Continued on page two

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