“Quite frankly, | don’t pay them enough to make it
worthwhile suing them!”

—Eccles, Morning Star

NDP backs unions
— against bosses attack

All-out support for organized
labor during this period of
employer attacks was expressed
by some 500 “elegates to the
NDP provincial convention
held in Chilliwack over the
weekend. :

The fact that an emergency
resolution was brought in during
the late hours of the convention
expressing this: support grew
out of the fact that a caucus state-

ment, signed by 12 Members of
the Legislature, met with ill-con-

cealed idsapproval from the
majority of the delegates.

The caucus statement said, in
part: “‘As a group that hopes to
govern this province for the
benefit of all the people, our
view must reflect the broader
public interest rather than the
view of one single sector of
society.”

“Significant as the organized
labor sector is, the public
interest must prevail.” <

The statement did not
elaborate as to why the ‘‘broader
~ public interest’? was contrary to
the broad public interests of the
ordinary man who makes up the
ranks or organized labor.

In speaking to the emergeney
resolution which was prepared
at the direction of the new execu-
tive, Bob Strachan, MLA,
referred to the Nazi-like Bill 22
recently passed by the Socred
government under’ which
companies can be forced to join
employer organizations and
which leads to the concentration
of power in the hands of a few big
companies.

““‘We must let the people know
that this is a class war, declared
by the employers, and that we
are solidly behind the unions and
the workers. The NDP must be
in the vanguard .of the fight,”
Strachan declared.

The resolution stated that
employers are using the anti-
labor laws of the province to
classify honest men as criminals
and .to make it illegal for
workers to be faithful to the
great traditions of brotherhood
and to respect the picket lines of
the workers.

It called for a moratorium on
all lawsuits that classified or con-

recently ordered

victed honest men as criminals
because of their support of the
collective rights of workers.

The convention sent a message
of sympathy and support to
Arnie Davis, Merchant Service
Guild negotiator who was
jailed by
Justice Dohm.

In a major address to the con-
vention, NDP national leader
Tommy Douglas gave an oblique
warning to those elements within
the party who wish to rid it of its
“‘Jabor’’ label.

“Stop being fooled by the
people who are trying to destroy
you! Don’t let the editorial
writers tell you how to think.
They'll tell you to get rid of
militant labor unions, then hard-
core socialists, then radical
youth, then women, and then’’,
he added jokingly, ‘‘the three
who are left can hold their con-
ventions in a telephone booth.”’
-He warned that the struggle
must reflect the sharp con-
frontation between labor and the
Big Business-government gang
up.

“The brunt of Trudeau’s fight
against inflation has been borne

‘increases,

by the people least responsible
for inflation’, he said. Those
who are responsible have bene-
fitted from it, for company
profits are at an all-time high.
“Voluntary price and income

policies put forward by the ©

government are a fraud, a snare
and a delusion. For organized
labor there can be no voluntary
acceptance of wage controls; for
them to accept a legal and
binding 6 percent wage increase
guideline without at the same
time having any guarantee that
prices, rents, interest rates, etc.,
won’t rise, would be sheer
lunacy.”’

The government is starting
the rumor that if workers do gain
more than 6 percent wage
the excess will be
taken off them in the form of
income tax.

“But there is no suggestion
fromm the Trudeau government
that there will be tax on profits
over 6 percent’, he told the
delegates. “The government
wants to use inflation to impose
-a wage and salary freeze while
allowing the corporate elite to
take all the profits the market
will bear.”

COPE nominates on June 20

The Committee of  Pro-
gressive Electors (COPE) will
hold a Conference on Saturday,
June 20, to nominate candidates
for the December 9 Vancouver
municipal election.

The all-day gathering at the
Rio Hall, 3324 Kingsway,
beginning at 10:00 a.m., will also
consider. an election’ platform
for its aldermanic, school board
and parks board candidates.

Under an agreement reached
last month between COPE and
the Vancouver Area Council
Executive of the New Demo-
cratic Party, each group will
nominate half a slate of candi-
dates. The mayoralty candidate
will be jointly nominated. The
two groups will then join forces
to campaign for the full slate—a
mayoralty candidate, 10 for
council, nine for the school board
and eight for the parks board.

The June 20 COPE conference

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—FRIDAY, JUNE 12, 1970—Page 12

is open to all paid up members of
COPE. Affiliated trade unions
and community groups may
send delegates in proportion to
their membership.

Drafts of the platform for
Council, the School Board and
the Parks Board have already
been drawn up. Copies are being
sent to all members and affili-
ated groups prior to. the

conference.

We anticipate a hot and lively
election campaign,” said COPE
President, Frank Kennedy,
particularly around ‘such issues
as low rental housing, tax
reform, rapid transit, hospital
care and the redevelopment of
False Creek, so we're getting
our candidates into the field
early.”

For information contact:
Frank Kennedy, president, YU5-
2503: Ben Swankey. Publicity
Director, 433-8323.

Not so impartial,

Phil helps bosses

Welfare Minister Phil Gaglardi continues to break the law in

refusing to give welfare assistance to those in need.

Federal Minister of Welfare
John Munro has reiterated the
fact that under the terms of the
Federal-Provincial Pact
governing social assistance, an
applicant must prove only that
he is in need of help, and the
reasons for his need are not
relevant.

Gaglardi obviously is break-
ing the terms of the agreement.
He says that if he were to give

assistance to men out of work
because of labor disputes it
would be tantamount to the
government ‘“‘taking sides’’.
Welfare must be given on the
basis of need. If J.V. Clyne, F.G.
Peskett or G.R. Dawson are in
this category, let them apply.

~The fraudulence of Gaglardi’s
position is clear: He is using his
power to assist the bosses in an
attempt to starve the workers
back to the job.

Mr. Gaglardi maintains that
his government does not help
businessmen in need, so why
should he help workers?

He forgets, perhaps, that his
government has played the role
of sugar daddy (using the
worker’s tax dollar) to bankroll
scores of big companies in this
province.

The Socred government fought

claims of workers who have for —
scores of years paid into the fun
— one thing is sure. There must |

for the privilege of financing the
Roberts Bank project for Kaiser

‘ Coal Co. They gladly finance —

cheap hydro power to scores of
industries. Mr. Gadlardis

government has saved millions 4
of dollars for mining companles “|
in their support of income tax |

exemptions on new mines.

the insidious Columbia Power

deal; the Kaiser Coal sell-out; |

the cheap stumpage rates to
monster timber operations, 4!

then ask Mr. Gaglardi how much |

that type of “welfare” has cost

As for the refusal of the

Unemployment Insurance Com ~

mission to pay the rightful

be amendments made in the
Act. ;

The Act, as it is now inte

preted, is definitely biased 1

favor of the employers who are |
involved in a labor dispute

There is no good reason Why
benefits should be withheld from
workers who are locked out by”

the boss, and from those Wh? }

refuse to cross picket lines
although they are not directly
involved in the dispute.

Wage freeze hit

Cont'd from pg. 1

welcomed the Ottawa announce-
ment. Said Labor Minister Peter-
son: “‘I think it is in the national
interest for B.C. to co-operate.”’
He regretted that Ottawa has not
provided any machinery to back
up the wage guideline. What he
meant was _ legislation to
enforce it.

Premier Bennett underlined
what Peterson meant when he
told a TV interviewer Monday
night that Ottawa should use
MacKenzie King’s maxim in
relation to labor and wage guide-
lines: ‘‘Compulsion if
necessary, but not necessarily
compulsion.” Meaning: If labor
won’t bow down, force it to.

The reactionary Employers’
Council of B.C. also got into, the
act. Its president, F.G. Peskett
regretted that it was a ‘‘volun-
tary’ program and said it won’t
work unless legislation is
adopted to enforce it.”’

Benson’s announcement was
also hailed by C.J. Connaghan of
the Construction Labor
Relations Association, which
has forced a lock-out on the con-
struction industry. He said it
reinforces CLRA’s position and
boasted that the contractors
offer of 7 percent is ‘‘more than
fair’ compared to Ottawa’s 6
percent.

Strong condemnation of the
Federal government’s proposed
pay limits came last weekend at
the meeting of the Central Com-
mittee of the Communist Party
in Toronto. A special telegram
to Prime Minister Trudeau was
adopted by the meeting, which
represented leading Com-
munists. from across Canada.
The wire reads:

“You prices and incomes
commission has chosen’ to
propose wage guidelines which
would if acceded to reduce
labor's income and- living

.the main causes of inflat

standards at a time when
massive redistribution °
national income is needed.

maintain and improve living
standards and to lift up the re4
income of labor now. falling
behind the growth of nation@
wealth per head of population.

“Tt is clear that inflation 1s
going to be overcome by choki®
its victims while givilB
encouragement and support
the U.S. and Canadian monop?
lies, speculators and crimin@
armaments profiteers who a
the cause of inflation, and W en
dividend payments and profits
monopoly are the highest owe
while the poverty among tho
who produce that wealth ?
increasing.

“Such a government Pp?
adds fuel to the fires of inflat
and deliberately holds —
economic developments
making the working people
for this assinine policy thre
mass unemployment. af
accuse your government
pursuing an economic poll
which is both irresponsible 2
dishonest and which the 8
majority of Canadian
suffer from and will be force ir
oppose with every means at
disposal.

“We demand
administration

not

licy
jon

pay
ugl
e-

yu

that J its

reverse

begin seriously to take
to control monopoly pro
ing and to provide- jobs.
unemployed workers ha
markets for farmers. On SUC™
basis only will it be possiplt
raise living standards. This a  .
calls for an indepe? 1
Canadian foreign policy ee
demning United ne
imperialist policy of aggres*
war in Southeast Asia as OMe y
jonaly

pressures.” -

es

a
Add up what our people oe 7
lost in dollars and cents through ~ |

4