Anger Growing continued from page one laid off for extended periods. He said by not logging the whole forest profile, companies will go in and take high grade cedar and fir and “leave our communities devastated for the future!” The local president said there’s no reason, in the middle of a market downturn, for government to be in the back rooms with “corporate lackeys” giving up the rights of forest communities in B.C. He questioned who, other than Americans, would really have access to log markets in a “market-based” aoe fe system. “We don’t need a government to give up our forest policy or open up the cupboards doors and say ‘just take whatever you want from our shelves and it’ll be OK,” said Routley. He predicted the B.C. government intends to tell citizens of the province that it “saved them” by negotiating a deal with the Americans. “And what they’re doing instead is giving the corporations everything they’ve ever ream about,” he added. B.C. Federation of Labour president Jim Sinclair told the rally that, in addition to lowering the minimum wage in the province, the Liberals appear headed towards a cheap labour strategy in the forest industry. Rather than preserving high-paying, high-skill jobs and eantzolling the resources, he said the Liberals are “throwing the doors open” for Weyerhaeuser, TimberWest and others to “take American dollars and bid on our trees and take them to the cheapest labour.” He said the current restructuring of the forest industry will affect the whole province. “If this industry downsizes and restructures and throws people on unemployment, that’s fewer tax dollars for all the things we care about — health care and education. That’s fewer jobs in those communities,” said Sinclair, who added that union paycheques are the “backbone of small business.” Sinclair said if a softwood lumber deal is about exporting raw logs and ue | out of the country as part of a settlement with the Americans, jobs it’s “not a deal that anybody in this province can live with.” “Mr. Campbell — you’re the premier of British Columbia, not Washington State,” said the Fed leader. “Mr. Campbell, we know what Weyerhaeuser wants, we know what TimberWest wants. You may have gotten paid to get elected by them but you don’t represent them! It’s time you represented the people of this province, including workers.” Port Alberni mayor Ken McRae, a former CEP member, said wood harvested in the Alberni valley is being exported out of the country while workers sit idle. At a meeting with Forest Minister Mike de Jong a week earlier, McRae said legislation that is coming through “scares me.” Appurtenance clauses tying timber to mills and communities are going out the window with the Liberals in power. Name change continued from page one As the I.W.A. evolved, so too did the Lumberworker. It started out as the Lumber Worker, then changed to the B.C. Lumber Worker in the late 1930’s. After that came the Western Canadian Lumber Worker when the I.W.A.’s regions were formed in the 1950’s; the I.W.A. Canadian Lumberworker, as the union separated from the international union; and then the I.W.A. Canada Lumberworker of today. “All throughout our history the Lumberworker has been there, save for a period of time in the early to mid-80’s when we hit a big-time recession and there were layoffs and cutbacks,” said national second vice- president Harvey Arcand, officer responsible for the publication. “In the early days, the newspaper was used to organize the union in B.C. and western Canada and spread working class literature,” he said. “It evolved as the union made breakthroughs up to and following the pesenvoris War Two period.” The newspaper survived the divisive Red-White split of 1948 and moved into the 1950’s, 60’s, 70’s and 80’s as the union made steady gains in wages and benefits. It evolved into a national newspaper from 1987 on and is now going through another transition. “We think we've got some positive changes coming in the paper,” said Brother Arcand. “The editorial board (which includes Local 1-405 president Bob Matters, Local 1000 president Joe da Costa and editor Norman Garcia) has been working on re-jigging the publication to be national in its outlook.” “There’s going to be some definite signposts in the paper, where our members will be able to go in each issue to get regular news on issues like forestry and the environment, organizing and growth, health and safety and women’s issues,” added Arcand. “At the same time The Allied Worker will have the flexibility to get into in-depth issues with feature coverage of important topics that affect the membership.” “Basically what the editorial board is doing is refocusing the paper to cover the things we are doing for our members internally, the things that are happening in the CLC and federations of labour that affect them nationally and in the provinces, and get some perspective on international issues and events that impact working people,” said Arcand. “It’s a pretty tall order, but our members deserve the best job we can do.” As this issue goes to press, the redesign process is taking place and the new look will be ready for final approval in the winter of 2002. Look for one last commemorative issue of the Lumberworker next year (it will be a collector’s item!) and hang in there for next year’s launch of “The Allied Worker.” 2/LUMBERWORKER/DECEMBER, 2001 “We thought the timber around our area in Port Alberni, which is supposed to go to our sawmills and our pulp and paper mill was going - to be there forever,” he said. “That’s not going to happen. There’s going to be change. As forest-dependent mayors, we want some say in what is going to happen our community.” “We know there is going to be a deal made with the Americans,” he said. “We don’t want it to be an American agreement. We want it to be a Canadian agreement.” “Some big decisions are going to come down in the next couple of months and I can guarantee the mayors of this province are going to be behind you,” he told the ralliers. Port Hardy mayor Russ Hellberg told the crowd that no forest companies are operating in his area. “We're a strong believer in well- paid people and a well-regulated workforce that has a chance to work ° Suffering massive layoffs, I.W.A. members and their families showed that they don’t want to see logs exported safely and make good dollars and to be around for the long-term,” he said. He said that while workers have to adapt and get out ahead of change to be competitive, that “doesn’t mean. that they (forest companies) have the right to knock us down.” “From the companies’ side they are trying to get a lot of concessions but we have to get the equal number of concessions in return,” said Hellberg. “The easiest thing would be to say ‘yeah, let’s cut a deal with the ericans’ as the companies want to do and cut a real quick deal,” he said. “We’re going to keep paying for it. That’s why we're in this shit right now.” Hallberg said the industry has to get its prices down and “have the best quality product around.” MLA Joyce McPhail, one of only continued on page three ¢ National I.W.A. president Dave Haggard told the rally for jobs that other — : Canadian forest companies would be prepared to invest in B.C. if given the chance to.