Co W.. ¥ Al xe copres in this Msve lumber worker Heo once monthly as the official publication of the INTERNATIONAL WOODWORKERS OF AMERICA: Western Canadian Regionat Council No. | Affiliated with AFL-CIO-CLC 285? Commercial Drive. Vancouver, B.C Shane 874-5261 Ed ter Patrice 3. Kerr Gu imess Manager—Wyman Trineer “orwaerded fo every member of the 1W.4 in Western Canada in accerdancte with convention decisions, Subscription rate for non-members $2.00 per year. “BASH NOT THOSE WHO CAN BASH BACK” NE of the most revealing spec- tacles modern Canada has to offer is the way the Socred-Liberal- Conservative axis responds to eco- nomic crisis by attacking those least able to defend themselves; currently, the unemployed and the sick. The naive view of human nature, with which we all start, is that simple humanity would prompt people of all political views to defend the less fortunate. But that naive view cannot survive for long under Socred- Liber- al-Conservative governments. , The Liberals started it by savaging the Unemployment Insurance Pro- gram. Benefits are slashed. If a logger is laid off in early December because of snow, returns for a couple of weeks work in January and is laid off again, he becomes a “re-entrant” or (worse) a “repeater”, and is disqualified for benefits. If he earns $20,674 in a year,. nothing happens. If he earns $20,675, he will have to return 30% of his U.1. benefits. | wonder what penalty they have in mind for trying not to earn that last dollar. But if we thought that was bad, we THE WESTERN CANADIAN LUMBER WORKER thewestern canadian got news from the Tories. They are not - going to take second-place to anyone when it: comes to bashing the un- employed. They propose, among other things, to deny benefits to “seasonal” employees (i.e., if you need benefits badly, we'll find a way to deny them). Then there’s medicare. Notice how the sick have been ripping us off lately? Well, the Socred-Liberal- Con- servatives have, and they are going to show how tough they are by penal- izing the sick. You might ask “why would the Socred-Liberal-Conservatives want to do things that seem just gratui- tously mean?” The answer is simple: in times of economic stress, some people have to suffer, and itis a rule of political survival for right-wingers that you do not cause to suffer those who can return a favour. “Bash not those who can bash back”. ‘BLAMING WOMEN — ‘S ECONOMIC WOES | Bill Jackson, the Netannl Union of Provincial Govern- ment Employees’ president charged that governments continue to encourage and per- jate myths about women in labour force as one way of deflecting the public’s concern about Canada’ S economic ere. ae research report, “wuPGE says provincial _ Sovernments and their federal counterpart persistently use ‘women as convenient scape- eines while floundering in erises that have “generated high unemplo Ae wage Gils gocial service cut- Epa prices.” Governments, ®NUPGE full a Choe ‘ir full energies to Canada’ mnomie problems instead of and nt held myths about women in the labour force, the. report says that these particular charges ‘‘have no basis in fact, but are passed on to the public as ‘truths’. Among the commonly held myths was the notion that women do not need to work. But the NUPGE report indi- cated that most women are working out of necessity. More than 40 per cent of working women are single, divorced or widowed and are either self- supporting or sole supporters of their families the report showed. As far as the idea that women are not committed to their jobs, the report clearly showed that on the average ab- senteeism rate are about equal for men and women. ‘‘Women are concentrated in low occu- pations and income levels. Any differences in absenteeism or separation rates are too often attributed to their sex rather than the job level,” the report contended. As well the report noted that the nature of women’s work combined with their responsi- lity for children and the lack not as dedicated to their jobs as men.’ The report also charged that a 1977 federal report labelling women as secondary wage earners and abusers of the un- employment system is false. CUTBACKS HIT BY McDERMOTT The federal government should put the same priority on its promise to eliminate 60,000 public service jobs as it placed on its promise to relocate the Canadian embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, says Canadian Labour Congress president Dennis McDermott. McDermott speaking to delegates at the Public Service Alliance of Canada convention said that officials of the CLC had firmly stressed their re- cognition of the political moti- vation behind the cutbacks promise during a recent meeting with the Prime Mini- ster Joe Clark. ' “Tt was an election gim- mick,” he said. McDermott committed the full support of the CLC to fight against the re- “He’s head of a health food committee . know d’ya have any lilly roots or watercress . -SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER, 1979 — STEEL ORGANIZING - iL RADIO SHACK United Steelworkers of America are organizing a boy- cott against Radio Shack in order to force the company to settle with 200 of its workers in Barrie Ont. The Barrie workers ‘are striking not only to win their first contract but also to gain union recognition. In 1978, the Ontario Labour Relations Board certified the local but Radio. Shack appealed the certification to the Supreme Court of Ontario. Although the court ruled in favour of the Steelworkers the company didn’t stop there. Radio Shack appealed to the courts again but the courts, once again, ruled in favour of the union. In their judgment on the second case, the three ‘Supreme Court judges said to accept Radio’ Shack’s argu- ments and deny their em- ployees their union “‘would be to fly in the face of the intent of the legislation” of Ontario. On top of appealing the certi- fication of the union twice, Radio Shack has also dis- regarded two orders-from the Ontario Labour Board. The company has neither rein- stated employees fired for joining the union nor paid them for the time they missed even though the board has ordered Radio Shack to do so. To date the Steelworkers have brought more than 25 charges against the company to the labour board and have won every one. Currently the company: has not offered any wage increase and insists on a merit system that would be worth a 6 per cent hourly increase over one year. Base rates at Radio Shack would only be $3.83 an hour. As well, the company has offered no improvements in vacations, the welfare plan, overtime or shift premiums for sick leave. Radio Shack also insists on a contract clause that would fine _ the union $10,000 if any mem- ber refers to the company by “suggestion or innuendo’”’ without the permission of the company president. — Radio Shack, : owned by Tandy Electronics Ltd., a sub- sidiary of ITT, had sales in Canada worth $150 million in 1978 and one billion worldwide. - As well the company daily opens two new stores in the world. In a leaflet publicizing the boycott the Steelworkers ask unionists to tell their local Radio Shack store that they “won’t shop there until Radio Shack workers in Barrie, Ont. have a contract and a union they’ve tried to get for over a year.” SSE Ee) FOOD PRICES CLIMBING The cost of food consumed at home jumped sharply in July leaving food prices 12.2 per cent higher than the same time last year. The agriculture department said that the cost of fresh fruit, beef and cereal jumped in a four week period. As a result the home food cost for the period was 3.2 per cent higher than in June. The figures indicate food prices are on the rise again after a brief slump when the department said food prices | were climbing at a rate — 33° ae cent.