AS WESTERN CANADIAN LUMBER WORKER THE. LABOUR FORCE, EMPLOYMENT AND UNEMPLOYMENT br aes Annual Averages 1947-60 qT Millions of Persons —— ~~ TOTAL CIVILIAN LABOUR FORCE 4 ; 4 BSI Sa UNEMPLOYED LEER g 5 FOSS FERS SOO OOOS OEE 5 ees 4 - SOURCE—SENATE REPORT ON MANPOWER & EMPLOYMENT. 4 4 ‘gs VOD OSE Ch EEO Lae WAAMIMINILASNLAIN AAs 49 50) Sl. 52-53 54 55° 56 57 58 59 [960 Special Senate Committee's Report On Manpower And Employment “If unemployment continues to rise at the present rate, all of us will soon be out of work.” This statement was made by IWA Regional President Joe Morris during a recent radio address, in which he dealt with the report of the Special Committee of the Senate on Manpower and Employment. : In recommending the report for study by trade unionists, the IWA President expressed surprise that a report of this nature originated with the Senate. It could be accounted for by the fact, he said, that the committee secured the services of expert econo- mists. Evidence of a startling nature had been submitted by a large number of responsible organizations. JY } “An Outstanding Brief Had Been Prepared for the Committee by the Canadian Labour ; ( Congress’. eee Oa A An outstanding brief had been prepared for the Com- mittee by the Canadian Labour Congress. The evidence so compiled was of such a nature that the Committee had no alternative but to warn the public that unemployment is now . the most pressing problem before the Canadian public. The speaker stated that the report is a complete vindication of the position taken by organized labour during the past two years. The recommendations which are couched in guarded language are not as specific as labour might desire. Nevertheless the evidence, now verified by officialdom, provides an excellent foundation for labour’s continuing campaign to combat unemployment. Joe Morris urged that the facts, as disclosed in the report, should be made widely known among trade union members. The IWA President said in part: “For the first time this report gives us an accurate and official measurement of the extent of unemployment in all in- dustries and in all sections of Canada. The sad story is that since 1956 and before, unemployment has been sharply rising. The trough of each recession revealed a new high in the num- ber of workless. After every period of recovery, the level of unemployment has been higher than in previous upswings. UNEM "THE MOST PRE RRR RR eee “Forty Thousand Workers, or 6.69% of the Total ‘. ; Working Force in British Columbia, Are Now { “ ; Without Jobs”. Le On eR RR . “The average unemployment throughout 1960 was seven per cent of the working force, One in every nine Canadian . workers has been unemployed. The mid-July reports confirm — the findings of the Committee that the usual seasonal activity does not touch the core of the problem. In July the official stat- istics show a slight improvement, but shows that 6.6 per cent © of the working force of British Columbia is still unemployed. Unemployment in July was higher than in the same month in 1960. At the peak of business activity, we have 40,000 work- less people in British Columbia. It is quite obvious that if this situation exists in July and August, next winter will see a calamity even greater than the one experienced last winter. There is a human side we must not ignore. The Senate Committee has this to say, ‘When the system falters the ~ workers face, through no fault of their own, economic distress for themselves and their families. Even in the absence of such ‘distress the inability to find work may have serious conse- | quences. To the young man in quest of his first job it may ~*~ bring involuntary idleness and frustration, and even though |, | he is still able to draw on the resources of his parents for sup- port, the experience may leave its scars. To the more mature _ ! person it may bring disillusionment and a feeling of inadequacy ‘* which the unemployment insurance system is powerless to & allay.’ pA “The Experience Among Families of the Unemployed Have Been Harrowing in the ; Extreme”. } ee Re eRe Re ee Re ee Re ee Ree ee Re ee ( ¢ ¢ ( ¢ ¢ ¢ ¢ ( ¢ ( ~ Most of us will agree that this is an understatement. The \ experience among famillies of the unemployed have been harrow- ing in the extreme. The time has come when we must drive home * to the authorities the simple fact that the terrible wastage of un- « | employment is more costly than measures which will rid us of this drag on our economy and tragic deterioration of human resources.” The speaker listed the various types of unemployment, ex- plaining that unemployment springs from a number of root causes. © ee RRR eee ee ee een ene enn =~, WwW 4 * ( The Forest Products Industry Has Shown the , ‘ ( / ’ , Highest Seasonal Variations”. ; : POR eS NS eer me ¥ The Committee’s report classified the various types of unem- %' ployment under the following heads—frictional, cyclical, seasonal, i |