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“INSTEAD OF YouR CEGULAR CHRISTMAS TURREY THs
NEAR WE ARE DRESSING OUR FOREMEN LIKE SANTA CLAUSE"

High-priced lawyers for oil companies operating in B.C. maneouvred last week before
the Royal Commission on Gasoline Prices to block B.C. Communist Party leader Nigel Mor-
gan from presenting his full case against monopoly control in the industry and for curbing
their exploitation of the public. ese

Appearing before the com-
mission hearings in Vancouver,
Morgan presented a briefand then
asked for permission to remain
in the witness chair to elaborate
his views further. However, Shell
Oil Co. lawyer Douglas McK.
Brown, Q.C., opposed Morgan
being allowed to make a further
statement.

Commissioner Judge C. W.
Morrow asked the oil company
lawyers if they wished to hear
Morgan and said they didn’t have
to go along with Brown, but the
lawyers refused to hear Morgan
further and refused to question
him, Obviously, the legal rep-
resentatives of the oil monop-
olies felt that the less Morgan
was given a chance to say the
better.

Morgan sought to introduce
evidence to show the high degree
of monopolization of the oil in+
dustry, the extent of U.S. con--
trol over petroleum and gas oper-
ations in Canada, and the way in
which these effected the price
set for gasoline,

“Everyone knows the price of
gas and oil is away out of line
with their cost, and that there is
no justification for price diff-
erences that range from 35¢
per gallon in Vancouver to 53¢
up-country,” Morgan told the PT.

“What many don’t know is that

oil is one of the most highly
monopolized industries in the
world, Seven big corporations
own and control 4/5 of the oil
resources of the capitalist world
The largest of these; Rocker-
feller’s Standard Oil of NewJer-
sey, through its subsidiaries,
Imperial Oil (which in turn owns
60 per cent of Home Oil), pro-
duces about one third of B.C?s
oil and gas sales,

“Gulf Oil, owned by the Mellon
interests, controls 60 per cent
of British - American Oil Ltd.
These two, along with Shell, a
subsidiary of the Royal Dutch
Shell, Standard Oil of California,
which controls Standard and
Chevron, and the former McCall-
Frontenac holdings of Texaco
Inc., completely dominate 72 per
cent of the Canadian oilindustry?”
said Morgan,

“These five big foreigncom-
panies which control the 3,000-
odd gas outlets in B.C, compete:
in advertising and marketing but
co-operate in setting and main-
taining monopoly prices,” char-
ged Morgan.

The Communist Party brief
called for legislation to take the
petroleum industry under public
ownership, and, pending legislat-
ion, strict control of oil and gas-
oline prices be established

Legislature must extend labor's

By CHARLES CARON

As we expected, big business,
in preparation for the coming
session of the B,C, Legislature,
laid the basis for a further at-
tack against labor’s rights. R,
S, S, Wilson, chairman of the
Canadian Manufacturing Asso-
ciation (B,C, Division), in his
submission to the cabinet, de-
manded that a number of re-
strictive measures be enacted,

He specifically demanded that
picketing be confined to the plant
where a dispute exists and not
be allowed to spread to an em-
ployer’s other plants; andcalled
for a reduction in the three-
month period during whicha
strike may be called, after a
strike vote is taken,

Obviously if workers striking
a plant are not permitted to

‘picket the operator’s other

plants, the company can transfer
its production to plants in oper-
ation, and thus break the strike,

The measure to shorten the
time in which a strike can take
place after the strike vote is
taken is simply to limit the
manoeuverability of the union and
provide the employer with the
most favorable grounds on which
to fight the union,

Among the employers’demands
was one to prevent “a minority
union group in a multi-union
operation from calling a strike
which shuts down an entire op-
eration,” To justify this demand,
the C,M,A, tries to make it appear
that they are concerned not for
their profits, but for the time lost
from such a strike by the major-

ity of the workers not directly
affected in the dispute,

No one will argue against the
necessity of labor co-ordination
in negotiations to-avoid unneces-
sary loss of time in strikes, The
B,C, Federation of Labor em-
phasized that fact in convention,

This, however, is a problem
for labor and should not be con-
fused with the conspiracy the
C.M,A, has worked out, The sole
intent of big business is to pre-
vent the use of strikes for the
settlement of sectional griev-
ances and demands,

They know that with the wide
introduction of technological
change the result will be further
rationalization of the production
processes which in turn will mean
more sectional problems, Big
business plans to disarm the
workers through denial of the
right to strike for a satisfactory

_ settlement of their grievances,

The whole emphasis in the
C,M,A, submission was against
strikes, Strikes hurt them deeply
because they touch their profits,
And of course, they never give
up their fondest dream ofno union
at all. Towards that end, they
placed before the cabinet the de-
mand for a “right to work law,”
a law which in essence encour-
ages no union among workers,

The Socred government would
like to oblige the monopoly in-
terests with this type of legis-
lation, but because of the mass
protests that would ensue, it
would have little chance of pass-

=Ang.

In contrast to the narrow self-
ish demands of the C,M,A,, labor
should place before the Legis-
lative Assembly proposals that
will benefit the vast majority of
the people ofthis province, Labor
requires above all a new eco-

nomic policy, a policy based on .

a considered outlook aimed at
the all-round development of
British Columbia,

Such an economic perspective
would require putting a stop to
the export of B,C, resources,
and instead, utilize them for our
own industrial development,.
Moreover, monopolies must be
placed under control to make
possible a planned development
of our province, and also, so that

the benefits of the technological

advances may accrue to the
people rather than solely to the
enrichment of those monopolies
for which the C,M,A, speaks,

To enable labor to play alead-
ing part in the achievement of

such policies requires not the

r | Bit

We

—

“So you are determined to ruin this
great firm by insisting on your ten
cent wage increase!’’

‘limitation but the extension of
labor’s rights,

’ Although comprehensive legis-
lation is urgently needed in the
form of a Bill of Rights for labor
that would embody at least the
minimum standards projected
in the federal code, it is likely
that the labor unions will limit
their submission to the cabinet
to eliminate the most objection-
able parts of the existing legis-
lation,

‘Labor legislation in British
Columbia has almost been con-
verted into anti-labor legislation
as a result of amendments in-
troduced by consecutive Liberal,
Conservative and Socred govern-
ments, Because of these restric-
tive measures, labor requires
far-reaching adjustments in the
present labor laws,

Among basic changes needed
are the following:

* Full bargaining rights for |

public employees;

* Make certification voluntary,
that is on the request of the
union, and certify unions for a
two-year period in place of the
present 10 months, In addition,
when a bargaining agency is

changed, the agreement should ~

terminate;

* Rescind Bill 43 and 42 which
both place severe limits on
labor’s democratic rights;

* Delete the provision in the
act which permits an employer
to bypass a union and submit
proposals directly to its em-
ployees;

December 18, 1964—PACIFIC TRIBUNE—Pag®

through the Public Utilities Com-
mission.

The brief said prices of pet-

roleum products were exhorb- |

itant and that the companies arb-

itrarily imposed inequitable and
unjustifiable price differences on |
up-country and interior consum= —

ers, It said cars are essentials,
not luxuries, and that, therefore,
oil and gasoline distribution

should be considered a public ~

utility.

The brief chargeda conspiracy

by world - wide cartels to fix —

prices and ruthlessly exploit sere
vice station operators, Multipli¢-
ity of service stations and costly
promotional schemes resulted in
exhorbitant charges, it said.

Morgan charged that compal- |

ies were profiteering at public
expense despite discovery of oil

in B.C. and modernization that —

greatly reduced production costs:

The brief proposed that gas prices

ces be rolled back; elimination
of inequalities and discriminat-
ory price differences andimmed-
iate public control,

It also urged legal action for
conspiracy and collusion to fi%

prices and legislation to bring |

under public ownership all oi
resources, refineries and whole
sale distributive agencies.

rights

* Ban court injunctions in Jabor

disputes;

* Remove the section from thé
act that permits the Labor Dé

partment to step in during neB0” ~

tiations and act as an arbitratio?
board;

* Strike out supervised strike

vote from the act;

* Remove from the act the timé
limit in which a strike may ¢
place;

* Remove the section thas
makes officers personally T°
sponsible and liable for the actl©
of the union;

* Establish the right to st
during the life of an agreemen™

These adjustments in preset
legislation and the enactme?
minimum standards are Vit#" ”
labor and must be fought
unitedly, They cannot, howe¥ ‘
serve as a substitute for 4 por
of Rights which will give #°).
a new status in line with today
conditions,

er,

Organized labor must
mately gain a say in the ope?
of the industries of Can@ ge
is inconceivable that in this a
of automation, monopoly ne

1
ests can be permitted to 45° aa

so-called “rights of profit” ‘e
of the well-being of the peQP™™”

Py

Legislation is essential to ea
tablish new norms of labor ae,
agement relations, Such ened
lation brought about and sust®™
through labor’s struggle
guarantee that the benefits "1p
automation will go to the P aio?
and not solely to enrich Can
and foreign monopolies. _ 12

rike -

ultie |
ation