FIGHTING PROGRAM URGED

Wood, pulp unions take
first step toward unity

The first tentative steps toward
unity of wood and pulp unions was
reached last week with the an-
nouncement of the establishment
of a liaison committee embracing
the three major unions in the
woodworking industry.

The establishment of the com-
mittee to aid in co-ordinating
contract negotiations is seen as an
especially significant move after

response to several thousand
leaflets circulated through Van-
couver mills by the Wood Bureau
of the Communist Party.

The leaflet, entitled ‘Unite for
major gains — reject wage
restraints” attacked the federal
government’s restraint program,

largest industry. Once a top paying
industrial job, woodworkers are
now ranked 27th according to
occupational income.

The situation is especially
aggravated this year with massive
unemployment in the wood in-
dustry which still leaves more than
5,000 IWA members not yet relating it to the wood industry.
recalled after the massive layoffs “Wage controls would mean
earlier this year. While the IWA is further exploitation and im-

: Cont'd from pg. 10
liveries in China and trade union
'8anizations in Western countries
‘ve demanded’ that the sale of
“Ms to the junta be stopped.
Many facts confirm _ the
despread view that China in-
fends to step up its penetration into
th tin America, using support from
o., Military fascist regime in
ile, in the first place.
_+He Communist Party of Chile
Sndemns this policy of Peking.
On after the coup, the Com-
prunist Party of Chile declared that
© “leadership of the Communist
arty of China has once again
Moved that it has deviated from
©path of the world revolutionary
democratic movement and is
Cing its interests above its in-
“hationalist duties, thus helping
°, Manoeuvres of the im-
Tndists. .. We therefore are
} nant at the opportunist
I na ion occupied by the govern-
®nt and the leadership of the
“™Mmunist Party of China.”
ve international atmosphere
3 €d by international detente,
trip vnich a tremendous con-
ution is being made by the
tet Union and other socialist
eoties: is conducive to our
a Ple’s struggle fot freedom. The
He of detente is weakening the

,, that is why the newspaper El
; €reurio, Dec. 3, 1974, reprinted a
Speech by Chiao Kuan-hua,
~.° foreign minister of China,

entaining vicious attacks on the

Soviet policy of
coexistence.

What unites the Chilean fascist
junta and the Chinese leadership is
their anti-Sovietism and hatred for
the world communist movement
and of the Chilean Popular Unity
parties.

We ardently hope that this
splitting activity of the present
leaders of the People’s Republic of
China will give way to another,
correct position. But today . . . the

peaceful

whole world and above all the -

Chilean people watch, with sur-
prise and anger, the unprincipled
behavior of the Chinese leadership,
behavior which has nothing in
common with the concept of
proletarian internationalism.
While talking at length about the
“revolutionary upheavals’’ in
Latin America, the Peking leaders
back with both hands such a repre-
sentative of counterrevolution as
Pinochet, who was brought to
power by fascist plotters with the
direct support of Yankee im-
perialism and the CIA. Never
before has the prestige of Maoism
sunk so low in the eyes of the Latin

‘American peoples.

The day will come when the
Chilean people overthrow the
dictatorship. They will remember
with gratitude those who supported
them in their hour of trial. They
will note with bitterness that the
Chinese leaders were un-
fortunately, on the other side of the
barricade at that time.

[Abridged from Pravda]

a
Pe | \ \
, W \\ A

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' WORLD

years of division.

A statement release by the IWA,
Canadian Paperworkers Union,
and Pulp Paperworkers and
Woodworkers of Canada pointed to
economic crisis as the driving
force behind the step toward unity.
“In these times of economic
crisis,” the statement read, ‘‘we
must set aside our differences and
work with solidarity for the good of
those we represent.’

Negotiations for the 27,000 strong
IWA and the 5,000 members of the
PPWC have already stalemated
with talks broken off. The CPU will
lead its 12,000 members into
bargaining on June.2.

IWA publicity director Don Fox
cautioned the Tribune that the
unions will continue to bargain
separately and at this point the
liaison committee will merely
facilitate communication between
the three bargaining units.

Nevertheless the seriousness of
the IWA is shown in the top level
representation on the liaison
committee, headed by regional
president Jack Munro.

Employer spokesman Don
Lanskail’s comment: that-he is not
concerned with the developments
toward unity can hardly be taken
seriously. Disunity and division
between the unions has been a
major factor in the fall down the
pay scale for workers in B.C.’s

CCW parley
Sun. June 1

The B.C. Chapter of the Congress
of Canadian Women announced
this week that its annual meeting,
being held Sunday, June 1, will
centre around the theme of In-
ternational Women’s’ Year:
“Equality, development, peace.”

Three papers will be presented
for discussion on this theme. A
highlight of the conference will be
the attendance of Hazel Wigdor na-
tional executive member of CCW,
who is coming from Toronto for the
‘meeting.

Women’s organizations are
invited to send delegates and
others are welcome to participate
as individuals. Delegate fee is $2,
including lunch.

The conference will open at 10
a.m. at the Grandview Community
Centre, 3350 Victoria Dr.,» Van-
couver. For further information
phone Eunice Parker, 936-4467 or
T. Garneau, 255-0958.

GREEN PAPER

Cont'd from pg. 2

immigrants by eliminating the
“nominated relative category”’
and enlarging the ‘‘sponsored
dependent category”’ to include all
members of a person’s family as
the term is commonly used... .
“The present regulations,”’ it says,
“which distinguishes between
parents over or under 60, children
over or under 21, and married and
unmarried children defies the laws
of nature and thereby creates
hardship amongst kin.”’

pushing for a $1 hour hike in wages,

poverishment of the working

the forest companies hope to utilize- people and more profits for bi

the crisis to force a seven-day week
in the industry with a negligible
pay increase. —

Although FIR, the companies’
bargaining agent, has not yet made
a wage offer, Munro has made it
clear that the seven-day week is a
“strike issue.”’ Further talks in the
IWA negotiations, or in the PPWC
talks have not been scheduled.

Vancouver IWA president Syd
Thompson said last week that no
progress in negotiations could be
expected until at least July.
Thompson made the statement to
about 40 IWA job stewards in a
meeting last Saturday called to
assess the feelings on the job about
negotiations.

According to Thompson there
will be no improvement in the
forest industry this year. Housing
starts in the U.S. have not im-
proved and the crisis is beginning
to affect the pulp industry more
seriously.

He told the stewards to expect a
fight, especially after seeing IWA
settlements in the U.S. Northwest.
There, a 65c hour increase was
secured from Crown Zellerbach
but all indications are that they
will have to strike at Weyerhauser
Timber to secure the same in-
‘crease.

The consensus from Vancouver
stewards is that there is a ‘quiet
determination for a good wage
increase’ among woodworkers in

the city.
That determination was
measured. in . the favorable

business,” the leaflet said.

Economic problems aside, the
big forest companies are still
making huge profits. The big three
in B.C.: B.C. Forest Products,
Crown Zellerbach and MacMillan
Bloedel,.all turned a profit rate of
between 14-15% in 1974.

The communist statement points
out that if the forest monopolies
were prepared to cut back profits
back to 10% it would releasé a sum
of money equal to 13% of all wages
and fringe benefits. This, com-
bined with government policies to
increase purchasing power and

_expand trade relations, would
provide the means to solve the
crisis of unemployment in the wood
industry. :

“What is needed in the lumber
and pulp industry,” the CP leaflet
says, “is a fighting program, bold
leadership, involvement of the
membership and unity between the
IWA and the two pulp unions.”’ The
leaflet offers a four-point program
to unite the membership in
negotiations. The points include a
shorter work week and ‘shorter
work day with no loss in take home
pay, a substantial wage increase,
an improved pension plan with
retirement at 60, and improved
welfare benefits with full costs
borne by the employer.

The adoption of such a program
with the consolidation and growth
of unity between the forest unions
could show the way back for
woodworkers to full employment
and economic security.

HIT REALTY FIRM
Strata Title
urged by N.

Daon

Development is

deliberately accentuating the
_ present rental shortage on the
~North Shore by creating a false
rental market, charged Ernie .

Crist, spokesman for the North
Shore Tenants Association this
week.

Crist said apartment blocks built
under strata title and owned by
Daon . Development in North
Vancouver are rented on a monthly
basis as standard rental ac-
commodation. As a result, people
are moving into these apartments
from all parts of the Lower
Mainland.

However, as soon as the
buildings are filled and the

families have settled in, they are

informed by Daon that the
premises they have rented are
Strata title. They are urged to
purchase the suites they are

- renting or face possible eviction by

the people who will buy the

premises within 60 days of sale.
“With no place to go,”’ said Crist,

“some families. are literally

‘frightened into buying even though

the price is often far beyond their
means. The majority of the
tenants, being unable to buy, live in
continuous fear of losing the place

Act change
Van tenants

they have rented.” Crist charged —

that the whole thing is calculated to
use the present plight of tenants as
a lever for the benefit of Daon
Development. This situation is the
result of the present Strata Title
Act which does not prohibit the
renting of apartments prior to sale.

Crist went on to say that the
government should amend the
Strata Title Act immediately to
include a clause that, in the event
that a landlord rents premises
covered under strata title, the
tenants must have the option of

continuing their tenancy for a

minimum of five years.

In addition, Crist suggested the
provincial government make funds
available to make it possible for
the tenants to buy the premises
they live in by forming a
cooperative.

He also suggested that the
District of North Vancouver place

a moratorium on all applications ©

for strata title until the act is
changed. ‘‘To take advantage of
the present housing crisis to the
detriment of tenants or to force
them out onto the street is not the
solution to the housing crisis,”
Crist said.

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—MAY 30, 1975—Page 11