30 THE WESTERN CANADIAN LUMBER WORKER IN THIS DAY AND AGE By THELMA CARTWRIGHT Lower pay for women is in accord with every rule of eco- nomics, civilization, and fami- ly life, and is not discrimi- natory. If you think that statement comes from the depths of the Victorian era you’re wrong. It comes from one of our con- temporaries — Mr. Justice R. I. Ferguson of the Supreme Court of Ontario. He made this statement in January when he dismissed an action - by a Sault Ste. Marie police- woman, Lois Beckett, who claimed she was discriminated against because she got $1350 a year less than her male col- leagues and she was not per- mitted to join the police asso- ciation. If there are still people left who don’t believe there’s a need for a Royal Commission on the Status of Women in Canada remarks like Mr. Jus- tice Ferguson’s might help them to change their minds. The idea behind a state- ment like this is the old story that women don’t really need to work, that they’re only do- ing it for pin money or be- cause they’re bored at home. It completely ignores the facts of life which prove sta- tistically that the majority of women work because they must in order to have a rea- sonable standard of living. And, of course, Mr. Justice Ferguson, in his remarks, seems to completely ignore the fact that the Federal Government itself and eight out of our ten provinces have enacted equal pay legislation. Presumably they feel lower pay for women is not in , . . BUT THEY FIGHT ON Grace MacInnis, the out- spoken Member of Parlia- ment for the NDP in Vancou- ver challenged unionists to give some thought to nego- tiating one-half work days for women who would like to spend half a day at home. Addressing a banquet of union delegates who attended a weekend educational insti- tute sponsored by the Hamil- ton and District Labor Coun- cil, she said the problem of working women was a crucial issue that should be dealt with by the nation’s legisla- tors as well. - “T look forward to the time when all women, whether they are working outside or inside the home will be paid,” she said. At present payment to women is made in France. If a woman works at home, she gets a government allowance of about $75 a month. Mrs. MacInnis said that one-third of the nation’s work ’ force is made up of women and she contended that 70 per cent of working wives are married to men earning less than $3,000 a year. “The majority of the women are not working out- side the home just for fun or to express themselves, but to meet the grocery bill,’ she said. The current Royal Commis- sion on the status of women, she said, should deal with the problem of half the women of Canada working outside the home and not only with such issues as income tax and a few matters of discrimination. The commission, she con- tinued, should determine what happens to the young children, school children, fam- ily life and well-being on the job of working women. She said there was a great demand for child care centres for the working mothers and she asked the unionists to press for equal. rights for women. Also addressing the week- end seminar was Jim Brechin, accord with every rule of eco- nomics, civilization, and fam- ily life, and that it is discrim- inatory. Of course, as many women workers know, the mere fact that equal pay for equal work is a law in their province doesn’t necessarily mean that they get it. The same govern- ment that enacted the law can show through its own statis- tics that women earn an aver- age income that’s about half that of their male colleagues. This, of course, isn’t only because men still manage to get more in their pay packets for the same work women are doing. It’s also because our traditional attitudes of suspi- cion and distrust of women as potential supervisors or man- agers is still with us. There are far fewer women employ- ed in these capacities than men. CLC education representa- tive, who accused insurance companies of “robbing us blind” with the consent of the government. The companies, Mr. Bre- chin said, put up insurance rates because of so-called risks and demands. Then they use this money to loan back to the people at ever-increas- ing rates to buy homes, then the people pay mortgage in- surance to protect the money which they gave the com- panies. WANTED... MEDIATORS Spokesmen for 17 railway unions in Canada have called on the federal government to set up a board of mediators on a permanent basis to assist in negotiations in all indus- tries under federal jurisdic- tion. |— BANK BY MAIL When you use our special bank-by-mail service there’s-always a branch of the Commerce as close as your mail box. CANADIAN IMPERIAL BANK OF COMMERCE IT'S STILL NOT A WOMAN'S WORLD... It is far easier to enact equal pay legislation — whether it works in practice or not, than it is to stamp out the traditional prejudices ‘about the working woman. The Royal Commission on the Status of Women is anxious to hear from women themselves what areas they feel most need investigating. Already, well organized women’s groups and associa- tions have been sending in their briefs to the Commission putting forward their view- points and their priorities. But individuals are also per- fectly free to send in their own briefs on any question that interests — or in some cases — irritates them, whether it’s the lack of re- training for women, the need for community day care cen- tres, ipa oe inger= on the job, or anything else. : A brief is not a legal docu- ment. A clear and concise letter will be given just as much attention as long as it sticks to the point and clearly indicates the concerns of the writer. Anyone can send a brief to the Royal Commis- sion on the Status of Women in Ottawa. And in the spring, when the Commission will probably start on its cross country trek of public sittings anyone may attend. oe, If the Royal Commission holds a public sitting any- where near the home of Mr. Justice R. I. Ferguson of the Supreme Court of Ontario I hope he will attend. He may learn that his own ideas are about a hundred years out of date. LABOUR BRIEFS A productivity incentive clause — said to be unique in the North American aircraft industry — has been included in a contract negotiated in Montreal by the Machinists Union. * * The Canadian Chamber of Commerce is supporting labour’s fight against enactment of Bill C-186 (the amend- ment to the Canada Labour Relations Act which would allow the carving up of national bargaining units). The Chamber suggested to the government that: “A multi- plicity of bargaining units within an integrated industrial undertaking is bound to cause immeasurable harm to our national purpose.” * * The Canadian Union of Public Employees has capped a long struggle by winning bargaining rights for more than 1,700 CBC production employees in a national unit. 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