sean

Labor

Front

_ By WILLIAM KASHTAN

When President George Meany declared at the AFL-CIO Con-
vention that ‘‘automation, rather than being a blessing is a curse,”
he brought to the fore the horns of the dilemma confronting the
working and trade union movement.

All the myths and illusions held about what automation would do

have been shattered by events, So far,

the only thing the working

class has been getting out of automation and technological develop-

ments is job insecurity and unemployment and this is likely to con-

tinue as long as monopoly is in complete control of the situation.
This view is of course not shared by monopoly and its spokes-

men, One of them, Mr. Winters, the Chairman
of Rio Algom Mines Ltd. and a director of
many large corporations, speaking in Halifax

recently said:

of automation.

** Automation does not 7a result in
an over-all reduction of the labor force, es-
pecially for those countries which make the tools
Moreover, many devotees of
automation as a means of saving labor costs
are finding to their chagrin that they have had
to take at least as manyemployees ontheir staff
to maintain the intricate machinery and keep it

running as were displaced by the installation.”’

The Globe and Mail which lauded Mr, Winters for his positive

attitude to automation was nevertheless compelled to declare edi-

torially that ‘‘Mr, Winters may have oversimplified, Not every ma-
chine takes as many people to run it as are displaced by it.”’

To put it mildly,

this understates the question, After all,

if automation did not displace manpower, lower costs of production
and increase profits, monopoly would be opposed to it.

* *

*

The question before the working class is not whether to auto-
mate or not, but whether automation can be made to serve the inter-
ests of society or whether it will advance the profits of the own-

ers of these machines,

The working class is not machine wreckers like the Luddites
of old England who saw the machines as their enemy. It is not the
machines which are the enemy of the people but monopoly which
owns, controls. and operates them irrespective of social conse-

quences for the people and society

as a whole,

Automation could be a good thing, providing it is under public
control thereby ensuring that its benefits accrue tothe people. Auto-
mation could be disastrous for the working people and to society if it
remains under monopoly control with all the benefits of automation

going to the employers.

This is the crux of the situation which imposes such a great
challenge to the working class and the trade union movement.

* *

In some quarters a view is advanced that perhaps there is no
need to be so alarmed about automation — that it is not yet fully in
operation and that the real problem the trade union movement should

*

contend with is technological developments.

True enough, technological developments need to be coped with
by appropriate trade union programs, but it is shortsighted indeed
to minimize or play down either theimplications of automation or the

extent to which it is or will develop.

Automation will develop on a large scale and this will be
accentuated by the fact that to fail to do so, will place the Canadian

economy behind the eight ball.

At this stage we are confronted with creeping automation; to-
morrow we shall be faced with galloping automation,

But tomorrow it may be too late to do too much about it. It

needs to be dealt with now, when

it is already operating in a massive: way, with monopoly completely

it is still only creeping, not after

in the saddle and millions of workers out on the streets.

Public controls are needed now, effective policies are needed
_ now, to ensure that the Canadian people can share the benefits of

automation instead of becoming its
* *

The working class and trade

this problem in the normal way, that is, only by negotiations with

victims.
*

union movement cannot cope with

employers. The nature and scope of the scientific and industrial revo-

lution is such that it demands

decisive government action and

adequate legislation buttressed, of course by trade union action on

a whole number of fronts,

Public control requires planning. Planning requires public

ownership and curbs on monopoly so that the national interest will

be placed to the fore rather than the narrow, sectional and profit

interests of corporate power,

The trade union movement needs topress for such policies com-
bined with the demand that the benefits of automation be translated in
terms of the 85 hour week with no reduction in take home pay;
a massive retraining program at full pay to provide working people
with the education and skills automation makes necessary; increased
wages and extensive social security; a minimum wage of $1,50 per
hour for male and female workers; no layoffs until other useful
work is found; full consultation between management and union before

automation is introduced.
Automation is placing these
with a new urgency.

and other questions to the fore

To ensure that automation ‘‘can be a Bessie. not a curse”’ will
require united economic and political action on a much wider
scale and scope than has been undertaken so far by the trade union
movement. The coming CLC Convention will indicate the extent

to which this is realized.

Mine Mill loses appeal

The Ontario Court of Appeals
has rejected an application by
Local 598 of Mine Mill to quash
Ontario Labor Relations Board
certification of the Steelworkers
as bargaining agent for INCO
workers at Sudbury.

Counsel for Local 598 has

announced that the next step will
be an appeal to the Supreme
Court of Canada. The local’s
position is that last year’s elec-
tions at INCO should be declared
null and void due to glaring dis-
crepancies in a number of in-
stances,

WANTS TRADE RESUMPTION WITH USS.

‘Cuba wants peace with
all countries’

Cuba wishes to live in peace
with all countries, irrespective
of their social systems, Fidel
Castro told a huge throng assem-
bled in Havana Jan, 2, The Cuban
people demand only the right to
their own form of self rule.

Recalling the military parade
which had just marched past the
rostrum to honor the fifth anni-
versary of the revolution, Castro
declared:

‘We would prefer not to use
all that artillery, those tanks and
rockets; we would prefer that
not one of our soldiers should
lose his life.

**If we lived in peace we would
not have to keep tens of thou-
sands of our best people in the
armed forces, We could use them
and the resources spent on arma-
ments for production,”’

U. S. President Johnson’s
statement about ‘‘learning to live
in peace’’ with the people of all
countries was an encouraging
remark, said Castro, but when
one refers to‘‘ all countries’’, one
has to include Cuba.

Recent military action against
a Cuban ship has been carried
out by the Central Intelligence
Agency, he charged, and such
acts would bring the U.S. no
glory and no prestige.

The Cuaban revolution was the
first time in history the Cuban
people were able to determine
their own fate, Castro continued.
‘*We had only the experience of
armed struggle, and we didn’t
know exactly how to build a new
life.

**But we knew that the revolu-
tion must bring an end to law-
lessness, deceit, privilege. We
knew it must put an end to pov-
erty, unemployment and exploi-
tation.”’

* * *

Today, he continued, the whole
Cuban people is convinced the
past will never return.

*‘Our revolution is part of the
powerful world revolutionary
movement which began with the
historic revolution of the work-
ers and peasants of the Soviet
Union— a revolution of Lenin, of
Marx and Engels,”’

This revolutionary movement
has gained greater and greater
strength, and today has at its
disposal the strength of the so-
cialist system and all the people
fighting imperialism.

‘*Without this powerful move-
ment, we would not be able to
stand up to imperialsim’’,

Turning to Cuba’s economy, .

Castro said the revolution was
no longer limited to making
promises, In spite of the hurri-
cane which brought so much harm
to the people, supplies were
greatly increased by the end of
the year. He noted that.the state

FIDEL CASTRO
of the Cuban economy is improv-

ing. In 1963, exports increased
by 200 million pesos (about $200.
million) to a total of 750 million
pesos,

The economy will improve
even more in 1964, he predicted.
Modern technique will be intro-
duced in industry and agricul-
ture, enabling the people to in-
crease productivity and their
living standard.

By 1970, he predicted, sugar
output will reach 10 million tons
annually. At present, high prices
favored Cuba. ‘‘But we are not
interested in speculation. We
want to trade on the basis of
mutually beneficial long-term
agreements. We are ready to
compete with bourgeois produ=
cers of sugar,’’

Castro

have gained the right to oul”

U.S. trade policies had nd
achieved their aims against Cuba
but hurt many countries, incl d-
ing allies of the U.S. q

If the United States resumey
trade, Cuba could examine the
question of compensation for
U.S. properties nationalized by
the revolutionary government
But Cuba could trade with
socialist countries, and it wo
not plead with the U.S. :

‘‘We are very satisfied wi
the results we have achieved, |
Castro declared, ‘‘Our country!
rich, and our people are capable”
and enthusiastic. We have friend:
and we have a good future. Wé

future, and we can defend th
right. Our revolution is stromne
and will never retreat. It has
glorified Cuba throughout te
whole world.”’ 4
Soviet and Chinese leaders
were among the many goverm
ment leaders who sent greetings
to the Cuban government on thé
occasion of the revolutionary
anniversary.
Soviet premier Khrushehel
and President Brezhnev congrat- —
ulated ‘‘the heroic people of Cub
who have firmly embarked of”
the road of building a socialis v
society.”’ |
Pointing to the growth in cu- ;
ba’s international prestige, the
Soviet leaders, said; ‘‘On thie
day ... we again declare t
revolutionary Cuba will not
alone if it is attacked by U.S:
aggressive militarist circles.

Chinese leaders Mao Tse-tu
Liu Shao-chi, Chu Teh and Ch
En-lai said the Cuban peo
have been triumphantly advan
ing their revolution and estab-
lishing the first socialist count
in the Western Hemisphere
extremely difficult conditions.

“‘The people of China and Cuba
have forged a profound comrade
ship-in-arms in their comm
struggle of opposing U.S. imper -—
dalism, defending world peace;
supporting the revolution of the
oppressed peoples and building
socialism.”’ i

DOUBT OVER FBI_CLAIM

Was Oswald guilty? |

(PEOPLE’S WORLD)

Growing doubts and contra-
dictory evidence continue to
challenge the FBI and Dallas
police claim that Lee Harvey
Oswald was the Nov. 22 assas-
sin of President Kennedy,

These are culminating in a
demand that’ the presidential
commission investigating the
assassination take steps to
guarantee the rights under
constitutional due process of
the man who was murdered in
the Dallas police headquarters
48 hours after the President’s
assassination.

From Texas and New York
has come the legal opinion that
Lee Oswald must be given de-
fense counsel, if posthumously,
during the deliberations of “ne
Warren Commission.

The president of the
Assn, of Defense Attorneys,
Percy Foreman of Houston,
Texas, told a national television
audience last Sunday (Dec. 29):

Natl,

**] think somebody should, in
the interest of the public, not
in the interest of Lee Oswald,
but in the interest of the people
1of the U.S, defend Lee Oswald

before this commission.’’

This, said Foreman, is the
only way ‘‘in my opinion, that
the evidence in this case can
be properly evaluated.’’

Some 10 days earlier, New
York defense attorney Mark
Lane submitted to the Warren
Commission a 15,000 word le-
gal brief on the Oswald case,
In it he challenged and - met
point by point the 15 assertions
proclaimed

Dallas District Attorney Henry

LEE OSWALD. Doubt and contra-
dictory evidence have given rise
to the demand he be defended
before the Warren Commission.

- January 17, 1964—PACIFIC TRIBUNE—Page

on television by '

Wade as being the ‘‘absolute
confirmation of Oswald’s guilt.

These 15 assertions are e
sentially the same basis upon
which the FBI officially built
its leaked verdict of Oswald’s
guilt at the time the Warr
Commission was preparing
start its investigation of
case,

the

* * *

In a letter to the commissi
accompanying the legal bri
Lane, who was elected to t
New York state Legislature
1960 on a Democratic party re
form movement ticket, urg
Chief Justice Earl Warren
name a defense counsel on O
wald’s behalf,

The Lane brief was published —
in full in The National Guar-)
dian of Dec. 19.

In addition , the chancellor
elect of the Philadelphia Bal
Assn, told the press Dec, 5 that
Lee Oswald ‘‘has been lynched’
and that his murder, while 1
the custody of police authoriq~
ties, was an indictment of the —
entire legal profession for it?
failure to protect him. f

Lee Oswald had been ques:

See OSWALD, pg. 7