convention

B.C. Premier Ujjal Dosanjh was on hand to
speak to delegates and acknowledged that he
was an I.W.A. member in the 1960’s. When he
first immigrated from India, he worked on the
green chain at Burke Lumber (now the Main-
Jand sawmill of Terminal Forest Products) in
Vancouver Local 1-217.

“Tm proud of this union because I’m proud of
my roots, because my own history has roots in
this union,” he said.

“I was proud to be a member of one of the
greatest and most historic unions in B.C., the
I.W.A. And you gave me a voice in my work-
place, and in my community, and respect, the
same respect that you still give every worker
from every ethnic and racial background.”

Dosanjh said the NDP is back on track, hav-
ing balanced last year’s. He said the govern-
ment is expecting another balanced budget for
the current fiscal year.

In reference to a provincial election to occur
in 2001, Dosanjh said the Gordon Campbell Lib-
erals are committed to dramatic tax cuts for big
business and the wealthiest citizens paid for by
cuts to public services.

“Tt is a stark contrast. Their slash and cut
agenda does not address the needs of today’s
families,” said Dosanjh. “Mr. Campbell is
obsessed with tax cuts that benefit the richest
the most. He never forgets who he represents
and it certainly isn’t you or other working fami-
lies in British Columbia.”

Campbell is opposed to the NDP’s legislation
to increase the minimum wage to $8.00/hr.

“T ask you, what does it say about a leader
who wants to give hundreds of millions in tax
breaks to the wealthiest British Columbians but
won’t support 85 cents an hour more for the
lowest paid workers in British Columbia?” __

Dosanjh said the province’s economic base is
recovering, the NDP is spending more on
Medicare (despite federal cuts of over $2.5 bil-
lion), since 1991, the government has built a
new school every 19 days, and post-secondary
tuition fees have been frozen for the last five
years. :

In reference to the forest industry, Dosanjh
said the NDP has worked with the union and
others to develop land-use planning processes.
He said that he is committed to completing that

rocess to ensure that “B.C. has a sustainable
forward-looking land-use plan that protects eco-
nomic and environmental values, just as 1am
committed to working with you to ensure B.C. is

i Jue added opportunities.” :
. Leen pared together as well in turning

back some of the really bad ideas coming out of

Ottawa, like lifting the surplus test on logs from
private lands. Tf that proposal ever surfaces
again, we will be just as forceful in opposing it,

e Premier Ujjal Dosanjh said that more has to be done to market B.C.’s forest products.

B.C. New Democrats on track says Dosanjh

said Premier Dosanjh.

“T am open to new ideas when we discuss
issues like the Softwood Lumber Agreement,
but let me be very clear. While I’m willing to
talk about free trade in lumber, free trade in
logs is not on for British Columbia.”

The premier spoke in favour of Forest Renewal
B.C. call said that it has helped thousands of
workers respond to changes in the forest indus-
try and said that NewForest Opportunities has
created new, good paying union jobs which
strengthen communities and renew the forests.

He said that more has to be done to get B.C.
forest products into Asian markets as the
province’s market share has decreased and been
replaced by producers from Scandinavia.

“We see the demand in Asian markets shift
more to kiln-dried products, and B.C. has to be
in a position to respond. I’ve been speaking with
Dave (Haggard) about this and I’m confident
that by working together, in the very near
future we will address these challenges together,”
said Dosanjh.

“I want to see healthy, vibrant, diverse resource
(dependent) communities in British Columbia. I
want to see the working forest designated and
protected in law, just as we protect parks, so it
keeps on creating opportunities for your kids
and their kids for decades and for centuries. At
every step of the way, I want the I.W.A. at the
table in partnership with us.”

° Members of Native youth groups were wel-
comed to the convention.

Stop exploitation

Continued from page twenty-six

and work in an area about the size of downtown
Vancouver to Boundary road in Burnaby.

The factories, he said, are set up like prison
camps — some with armed guards. Workers
sleep in groups of 20 in an area no larger than a
one car garage.

‘They make consumer goods that are exported
to Canada and other nations.

In one plant that Georgetti and others visited,
which made plastic and metal games like hockey
and soccer, workers are being paid $2.00 CDN
for 12 hours work.

Many were young girls that appeared between.
13-18 years of age from poor rural areas of
China.

He met one boy named Lee that had his hand
lopped off after it was mangled at the end of 14
hours of work in a plant that was poorly lit and
full of vapours. He was given a ride to a hospital
where a doctor said it was cheaper to cut his
hand off than try to save it.

A Chinese lawyer is representing the boy and
about 300 others in seeking compensation for
personal damages. There are 15,000 serious

accidents that annually occur in that province
alone.

He said that employers in China use the same
lack of regulations and rules to exploit young
people as workers were exploited by in Canada
during the industrial revolution.

“I don’t think that this young Lee and the
kids behind him should have to relearn the
lessons that we learned here for the sake of
globalization...”

Georgetti was told by a plant manager that
each kid makes him $7,000 a month profit while
they cost him $500 CDN to feed, clothe, house
and employ them.

“It’s amazing. That’s globalization. That’s
what they’re doing.”

The CLC president asked federal finance min-
ister Paul Martin to visit the factory but he
declined because, said Georgetti, “he doesn’t
want to see that. No one wants to see it. But
this greed and this exploitation must stop.”

In China the police crack down on bootleg
CD’s and computer software because of U.S.
copyright law.

“Now surely to God, if they can enforce copy-
right on the streets in China, surely to God they
can enforce worker rights and human rights in
the factories next door. Why not?”

LUMBERWORKER/DECEMBER, 2000/27