12 THE WESTERN CANADIAN LUMBER WORKER THE WESTERN CANADIAN LUMBER WORKER 38,000 copies printed in this issue. Published twice monthly as the official publication of the INTERNATIONAL WOQDWORKERS OF AMERICA Western Canadian Regional Council No. 1 Affiliated with AFL-C1O0-CLC 2859 Commercial Drive, Vancouver, B.C. Phone 874-5261 Editor — Pat Kerr Business Manager — Fred Fieber Advertising Representatives — Elizabeth Spencer Associates Forwarded to every member of the IWA in Western Canada in accordance with convention decisions. Subscription rate for non-members $2.00 per year. Authorized as Second Class Mail, Post. Office Department, and for payment of postage in cash. >? GUEST EDITORIAL FRONT LINE LEADERSHIP JOB OF UNION STEWARD HE union steward is an increasingly important person in today’s trade union movement. The men and women chosen by their fellow members for this position provide the “front line” leader- ship that furnishes the basic energy in the tens of thousands of local unions through- ‘out the United States and Canada. Unions have grown into a mass move- ment comprising tens of millions of wage earners and salaried employees. At the same time the number and complexity of collective bargaining agreements have multiplied. These developments make it impossible to confine the task of main- taining and extending the benefits of collective bargaining to a few nationally- known labour leaders or even to the full- time staff at the local union level. Collective bargaining agreements set forth in great detail the democratically- negotiated’ terms and conditions of employment. But these could very well remain paper gains unless they are effectively administered at the job level. Contract gains cannot be guaranteed automatically if there is no follow-up concerning their application. After all, the provisions of a union agreement are concerned with a con- tinuing relationship between manage- ment and employees. If this relationship is to be harmoniously maintained, ade- quate representation in the place of employment is of critical importance. The union steward provides this indis- pensable link between the member and the terms of the contract. These conditions have fostered the involvement of active members as union stewards as a logical extension of union leadership and effective representation. The union steward is in a practical way the mass multiplication of union leader- ship. The conscientious, painstaking way in which these men and women perform their duties in the service of their fellow members is a measure of their leadership qualities. When a grievance develops the union steward is the first line of defence against violation of a worker's rights. Union stewards are intelligent and sympathetic personalities. They furnish a standard of leadership, of ethics, of fairness, and of decency which truly reflects the applica- tion of democracy to the work-a-day life of their fellow employees. To understand a little better and to see a little farther is a distinguishing mark of the union steward, These innate characteristics are further developed by conscientious study. A sig- nificant trend is the increasing number of educational seminars for union stewards conducted by our local unions. These educational events, in which stewards throughout the jurisdiction of a local union meet for one or two days to discuss union affairs, reflect the growing maturity of our movement. The agenda for the union stewards’ meetings usually includes studies of pen- sion plans and health and welfare clauses. The provisions of current union agree- ments are a subject of a clause-by-clause analysis enabling the union steward to answer questions and help fellow em- ployees to understand the meaning of the union contract. Clinical discussions on the effective handling of grievances receive a con- siderable amount of attention at these union steward gatherings. They spend part of their time in listening to presenta- tions and participate in discussions on community relations affecting the well- being of their fellow employees. They invite their congressman, senator, or a legislative representative in their area to speak on current issues of the day affect- ing the nation. Individuals rendering exceptional and devoted service to society are often taken for granted or grossly undervalued while the spotlight of attention is held by spectacular or dramatic events or person- alities. The early founders of the trade union movement, working obscurely in a rapidly-developing industrial economy, often persecuted and looked upon with suspicion by the success symbols of their time, laboured heroically to bring to real- ity a vision and an ideal. Their goal was to make life better for working people. To do this they sought to apply the broad principles of self-government by means of collective bargaining representation to the working lives of wage and salaried employees. The union steward, actively carrying the principles of trade unionism on a people-to-people basis and helping to bring effective union representation to working people, is truly a realization of the ideals of the early founders of the trade union movement. This pioneering function is all the more emphasized in “right-to-work” states, where union stew- ards play a major part in the continual organizing necessary to maintain a union under open shop conditions. To those who are inclined to take the function and the benefits of their union for granted, we say, “Look to the union steward.” With- out his conscientious activity, the benefits of union collective bargaining could not be fully realized. Look to the union stew- ard — a person of intelligence, integrity, courage, loyalty, patriotism, with a capacity for cooperation with his fellows. He is a good citizen. We salute the union steward. Retail Clerks Advocate FOUR) WER Bal! AW QUIT BEEFIN’ .. . IF YOU WAS FIXIN’ ONE ON TH’ COAST YOU’D HAVE TO HAVE A DEGREE IN PLUMBIN’! PLANT DIRECTORY PROVES ITS VALUE PORTLAND, Ore. — The IWA Plant Directory prepar- ed earlier this year by the International Department of Research and Education is proving of great value to lo- cal unions in the U.S. and Canada. The directory lists wood products operations in the various provinces and states, along with other information —including the basic pay rate that was in effect as of Sep- tember, 1966. Value of the directory was outlined by Murray Drew, president of Local 1-118 in Victoria, B.C., in a letter to Walter Simcich, director of research and education of the IWA. Drew’s letter states: “This is just a short note to let you know what happened in this Local Union while ne- gotiating a new contract with one of, the employers. During the discussion, the employer was trying to make the point that one of his competitors from Eastern Canada had been in their plant and had in fact told the management here that the rate for a cer- tain category, which was a key position in the operation, was $1.65 per hour. “However, having the IWA Plant Directory in my brief case, it was very easy to dis- pute what he said, for I open- ed the Directory to the proper page where it stated, ‘Kingsway Lumber basic rate $1.95 per hour’ which was far more than the $1.65 per hour which had been quoted to us. “T thought I would let you know if we get no further use from our Directory, it has paid off for we concluded an agreement with this Com- pany with increases from 5 to 22 cents per hour, plus the fact we were able to destroy management’s statement in respect to his competitor.” PRODUCTIVITY CRAMPED HALIFAX—James A. Nor- ton, on research staff of the United Steelworkers in Can- ada, told a meeting of the At- lantic Provinces Economic Council that only fundament- al changes in Canada’s eco- nomic structure could help the country overcome the present 20 per cent produc- tivity gap with the United States. Increased productivity in Canada cannot be achieved, he said, simply by working harder or by a greater degree of co-operation between man- agement and labor. He said the corporate struc- ture in Canada causes pro- duction to be artificially cramped by purchasing poli- cies dictated by foreign own- ers of Canadian subsidiaries, by marketing limitations de- signed to prevent Canadian competition with foreign par- ent companies, and by re- peating in this country un- suitable management tech- niques imported from other countries. Productivity will improve only when changes in these basic criteria are made. He said tariff protection could be discontinued for all industries, and added, the need for tariffs is rapidly diminishing.