Labour Notes

Shelter funding
shortage rapped

A Vancouver city alderman and spo-
kespersons for several community groups
have hit the provincial government and
the Greater Vancouver Mental Health
Association for its role in a month-old
strike at the Lookout emergency centre in
the city’s downtown eastside.

Ald. Libby Davies of the Committee of
Progressive Electors, Jim Green of the
Downtown Eastside Residents Associa-
tion, and Jean Swanson of End Legislated
Poverty levelled attacks on the association
and the Ministry of Social Services and
Housing for shortft .ding the institution.

The 40 workers — the centre on Alex-
ander Street have 1.” 1tained an around-
the-clock picket sinc’ April 1 in pursuit of
a wage hike to bring them up to provincial
standards, according to their union, the
B.C. Governme::t Employees Union. —

The lesser-pz! workers at Lookout
have been taking: = the burden caused by
the downsizing c Riverview, the mental
institution that the province is phasing
out. Workers there and at other institu-
tions earn $2-$3 more than Lookout
employees, the BCGEU stated.

BCGEU president John Shields said
the strike is part of the recent round of
Social Credit government cutbacks in
social services.

“Our members at the Lookout work
with former Riverview residents who have
nowhere else to go,” said Shields. Social
agencies, particularly in the downtown
eastside, have been swamped handling
patients released into the community from
the institution.

“By refusing to provide a decent salary
for this difficult work the government
expects the employees to subsidize the
program with low wages,” he charged.

Davies said that through the strike “‘the
city has lost 40 emergency beds which we
desperately need. It isn’t fair the Lookout
employees are being asked to work for less
than others who do similar work.”

Green said the absence of the facility’s
services causes hardship, noting Lookout
is the only institution of its kind open 24
hours a day.

Swanson said ELP has written Victoria
demanding adequate funding for the centre.

Other groups who have stated their
support for the strikers include the Down-
town Eastside Women’s Centre, the
Downtown Eastside Resident’s Co-op, the
Carnegie Community Centre, Crabtree
Corner and Ray-Cam Housing.

Talks, which started in November,
broke down after the ministry and the
association said they would not provide
the necessary funding to close the wage
gap. Lookout workers include social ser-
vice aides, tenant aides, cooks, homemak-
ers and janitors.

TRIBUNE PHOTO — DAN KEETON

CGEU members James Cadehead (I), Naseeb Ali
warm themselves at fire barrel.

STRIKE AT LOOKOUT...

more workers were killed in the two years
following 1986: “This is totally unaccep-
table. The carnage must stop.

Enforce safety,

Georgetti urges

The B.C. Federation of Labour is join-
ing other unionists across the country in
marking April 28 as the Day of Mourning
tk workers killed or injured on the
job.

“Last year we mourned almost 150,000
workers in our province, and there will be
even more in 1989,” said federation presi-
dent Ken Georgetti.

Georgetti called it tragic that 33 per cent

He called for increased workplace
inspections and on-the-job safety training,
and for heavier penalties against compan-
ies ignoring health and safety regulations.

“If employers won’t respect their
employees health, then the government
must step in and force them to do so,
Georgetti said. s

“T’d like to see April 28 become a day of
celebration for workplace safety, rather
than a memorial day for injured workers.”

to fellow trade union

MAY DAY
GREETINGS

workers from the
members of

Local #4, Pulp, Paper
and Woodworkers
of Canada

>

May Day Greetings
from
Vancouver and District
Labor Council

100 years in the struggle
for peace and social justice.

Doug Evans
President

6 « Pacific Tribune, May 1, 1989

Frank Kennedy
Secretary-Treasurer

CUPE Local 389

marks May Day, 1989
in celebration
of all workers,
men and women,
standing together for
economic, social and
trade union rights.

GREETINGS

from the
British Columbia Teachers’ Federation

a union of professionals

2235 Burrard Street
Vancouver, BC V6J 3H9
731-8124

Greetings and Solidarity on this
May Da y, 1989

Join the fight to get health and
safety regulations for farmworkers.

Canadian

WW :
aes Farmworkers Union

Sarwan Boal (President), executive, and staff
#1-4725 Kingsway, Burnaby, B.C. VSH 2C3 Phone: 430-6055