Labour Breaking union aim of lockout Theatre giants Famous Players and Cineplex Odeon have embarked on a campaign to break the union in film projection booths across the country — and Vancouver has been chosen as the test case, a projectionists’ union representative told unionists in Vancouver Tuesday. Gus Bothas, the Western Canadian international representative for the International Alliance of Theatrical, Stage Employees and Moving Picture Machine Operators (IATSE), told delegates to the Vancouver and District Labour Council that the current lockout of projectionists in B.C. by the two theatre companies “‘is no ordinary labour dispute. “This is a test case for the long-term goals of these two multinational corporations,” he said. “If they can break the local in B.C., they can scare the other locals across the country whose agreements come up in the next four to five months,” he said. As part of the anti-union campaign, Bothas said, the theatres hired a public relations firm “to manipulate reality and truth,” and even assessed member theatres a fixed sum per screen to support efforts to de-unionize the theatres through political contributions. Parallel with their bargaining position, the theatres have been lobbying provinces to change the legislation that requires licensed projectionists in movie theatres. Famous Players and Cineplex Odeon locked out projectionists at chain theatres across the province Oct..11. The 100- member local had been without a contract since 1985 at Famous Players and since 1987 at Cineplex Odeon. Bothas said in an interview that the companies had started some months ago bringing in operators from outside the province as management personnel, and is now using them as scabs in the theatres. The union sought this week to obtain a ruling from the Industrial Relations Council declaring the lockout illegal because the companies had refused to appoint a person in B.C. to represent them at the bargaining table as required under Section 68 of the Industrial Relations Act. It also sought an IRC order instructing the companies to lift the lockout and compensate union members for lost wages. The projectionists’ union has been maintaining picket lines at affected theatres “but we’re only a small union and we don’t have the financial resources the theatres have,” Bothas said. He urged unionists not to patronize any of the theatres owned by the two companies. Also this week, the B.C. Government Employees Union, which represents 487 ticket takers, concession stand workers and ushers at theatres owned by the two companies, issued 72-hour strike notice Tuesday against Famous Players. Members had also voted 94 per cent for strike action at Cineplex but strike notice has not yet been issued. The major issue is job protection, as the companies have moved increasingly to close unionized theatres and open new theatres non-union. “People are watching their jobs disappear from under them,” BCGEU president John Shields said in a statement. “The companies are closing and re- opening their theatres just to deny their employees the protection of a collective agreement.” BCGEU members have been without a contract at the theatres since February. 12 e Pacific Tribune, October 23, 1989 LOGAN LAKE — Striking members of the United Steelworkers at Highland Valley Copper were voting on a tentative agreement Thursday that, if ratified, would provide wage increases a company spokesperson said comes close to 20 per cent over two years. But unknown is how the agreement, hammered out in sessions with mediator Vince Ready, deals with the highly conten- tious issue of contracting out jobs that kept miners out on the picket line for more than 100 days. Further details of the pact were to be released Thursday, but attempts by the Tribune to .reach union officials were unsuccessful. Local 7619 president Richard Boyce has been quoted as saying, “We’ve done extremely well,” on the deal. The 1,180 USWA members walked off the job July 6 after talks over wages and contracting-out broke down. The latter issue has been particularly contentious, as the company, owned by a conglomerate of Canadian and foreign mining concerns, was continually eroding jobs by bringing in outside firms to do-miners’ work. A key point of contention involved a deal to bring in maintenance mechanics from Finning Caterpillar to service new haulage trucks purchased from the U.S. firm. Striking workers. at the huge open pit mine, located near the community of Logan Lake between Kamloops and Ash- Copper workers voting on pact PICKETS AT HIGHLAND VALLEY COPPER .. croft, told Tribune reporters visiting the site last month that they were prepared to stay out until the contracting-out issue was resolved satisfactorily. Estimates then were that the dispute could last through the winter. Press reports say the combined wages and benefits package in the tentative deal _ strike began July 6. amount to a 25-per-cent increase over two years. The hike still does not put miners’ wages in line with those of coal miners, but the increase represents a greater gain than that achieved recently by workers at Ford- ing Coal. The disparity between the wages of copper miners and coal miners was another key issue in the strike. Opening a dialogue for unity By FRANK COX Trade unionists and community activists, indeed the majority of Canadian people, had no doubt that the Free Trade Agree- ment spelled bad news for Canada. There was popular consensus that economic inte- gration with the U.S. with attending politi- cal, regulatory and cultural “harmonizing” would mean sacrificing our sovereign rights as a nation and would result in a sharp decline in living and working conditions for most Canadians while enhancing the profits of a few multinational corporations. Since the deal was rammed through by the Tories, our worst fears are beginning to be realized. The first free trade budget has made it brutally clear that with the pro- posed cuts to the unemployment insurance program, the GST and other key features, the Tories mean business. The list of free trade-related plant clo- sures is already shockingly long. Corporate restructuring is taking place at breakneck speed, leaving a trail of dislocation, disrup- tion and unemployment. While many workers who have fallen victim so far have been absorbed elsewhere in the economy, over 55,000 jobs. are already gone as a result of free trade with those workers now facing the prospect of reduced UI benefits. Privatization and deregulation is coming fast and furious with virtually all public services being placed on the auction block. Control now of entire resources has been effectively given up to the U.S. as the free trade disputes panel decision affecting west coast fisheries so graphically demonstrates. In short, it is unmistakable that the neo- conservative-corporate agenda is not a dis- tant threat; it is unfolding now with frightening speed. It is equally clear, too, that we are not dealing with government with traditional political sensitivities to pub- lic pressure — the corporations are in charge now and they don’t give a damn about public opinion. One might be inclined to say I’ve heard all this before — what is being done about it? Labour Forum In my opinion, despair is certainly not called for in this situation, but waking up to reality is crucial. While unprecedented mobilization was achieved against the free trade deal and such influential coalitions as the Pro Canada Network were formed, much of the momentum that was generated in that campaign has dissipated since the election. What is urgently needed now more than ever is far greater unity and co-ordination among progressive forces to step up a fight back. The left in the trade union movement has a particularly crucial role to play in mobilizing the (largely) sleeping giant and by bringing organized labour more effec- tively into the coalitions that form the com- bined social force for a people’s vision of Canada that can’t be ignored. This process, in my opinion, is moved ahead by the left in the labour movement getting better organized. It means building the action caucus. It means seeing the CUPE convention, the B.C. Fed and CLC conventions, labour council meetings, local union meetings as necessary opportunities to co-ordinate efforts to move forces into action. This process is aided by talking to each other on the left in the labour movement and community organizations, by exchang- ing ideas, by debate. The Pacific Tribune as a weekly that has for decades been a consistent voice for workers and peoples movements has been a valuable tool to the socialist left in this pro- vince. We are now setting out to improve and broaden the contribution the Pacific Trib- une can make to left dialogue and debate by inviting all those who are active in the trade union or popular movements who share’ some socialist and democratic vision for Canada to use the pages of the Tribune to advance ideas and action. To this end, we are initiating Labour Forum which will be specifically aimed at providing another important vehicle for left information and debate within the labour movement. We invite you to use, in addition to other publications, this column to assist the movement in clarifying ideas, developing common programs and advancing actions that will contribute to forging a real chal- lenge to the corporate/neo-conservative agenda. Frank Cox is a former organizer with the UFAWU and currently labour secretary for the Communist Party in B.C. Published weekly at 2681 East Hastings Street Vancouver, B.C. V5K 1Z5. 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