THE EXILES WITHIN — 56
Pages, a publication of the Toronto

UE Retirees Union, available from

the United Electrical Radio and
achine Workers Union, 10
odeco Court, Don Mills,

__ The Toronto Retirees Union of

| the United Electrical Workers

Union (UE), has produced a
highly readable, well-reasoned
klet that examines the history
nd development of pension pol-
Cy in Canada, its effect on the
Iderly and the ways to achieve
the Kind of life they’re denied, yet
80 tichly deserve. :
Prepared by William Devine,
| With the assistance of the federal
_ New Horizons program and UE,
the booklet is an excellent tool in
the struggle to win adequate in-
Come and other needed benefits

| ‘rt those now retired who have

E Made a lasting and valuable con-
| ‘ibution to the nation.

| . As suggested in the foreword to
the booklet, the UE has fought

'“Onsistently over the years for the
' Position that it is the federal gov-
_ &mment that is responsible for the

Social well-being of Canadians
4nd that the right to an adequate
'"etirement income is earned dur-

| Mg the working life of each
| Worker.

| _., The aim of the retirees publica-
| “ion is to more fully explore in
§Ome depth, UE’s position on
_ Pensions.

__ To do this the booklet opens
With a discussion on the UE’s

The members of the trade

‘Yhion movement in Canada are
|| Just as determined as ever to get

| "dof wage controls. The antics of
the so-called Anti-Inflation Board
Cannot change that resolve. Its
cisions do not alter in any way
the aim of Bill C-73, which is to
Toll back the incomes of the work-
Ng people and increase the profits

| Of the monopolies.

| The working people at large are
 l0oking to the trade union move-
Ment for leadership to restore

_| Meaningful and effective collec-
| tive bargaining. New strata ‘in our

an

“| 8eneral work stoppage or work

| Society, including professionals.

‘| S€ek protection from the growing

| ‘Conomic squeeze — by means of -
| trade union organization and

| Struggle. \

| The willingness to struggle
| Bainst injustices, come what
May, was clearly expressed at
_Xuebec City last May when a

| Strong mandate was given the

a leadership of the Canadian Labor

Ongress to organize and lead a
Stoppages, if and when
| Necessary.

This position has been en-
dorsed’ by a powerful organiza-
tion, not as yet in: the ranks of
| CLC affiliates, the Ontario Public
| %€rvice Employees Union.

Es Left to Own Devices
_ . But while the CLC has alerted

UE BOOKLET ON PENSION POLICIES
| ‘A valuable contribution’

affiliates concerning this clear

The exiles |

basic philosophy as opposed to
that which guides big business
governments.

This is followed by a discussion

of how pensioners, including

those receiving private industrial
pensions actually fare under cur-
rent legislation.

Outlines are given of the his-
tory of the Old Age Security Pen-
sion, the Canada Pension Plan
and private pension plans.

A concluding section outlines

'

the UE’s proposals for future ac-
tion on pensions linked with a dis-
cussion of the pension campaign
of the Canadian Labor Congress.

The book is an informative
well-written and valuable con-
tribution on behalf of the genera-

- tion that has contributed so much

to what the rest of us enjoy today,
yet receive so little of themselves.

— Stan Bullock
reprinted from UE News

Need mass campaign
against wage controls

mandate and the need to prepare
and be ready for a general work
stoppage, and while a number of
provincial federations have taken
concrete steps to prepare for such
an eventuality, nothing has been
done by the CLC itself apart from
a paper campaign of information
and education.

So far, unions have been left to
their own devices — as in Elliot
Lake, Kitimat, Thompson, Arvi-
da, and scores of other places.
Not even a token effort has been
made at co-ordination and leader-
ship to promote solidarity action,
or to develop and seek support
from the public at large for mass
action to defeat wage controls and
beat back the assault on trade
union rights and living standards.

This raises the question of the
need to be on the alert against
manoeuvring on the part of
right-wing NDP and trade union
leaders, who seek to bypass the
struggle and look for gimmicks to
promote accomodation with the
government and big business at
the expense of the workers.

Such ‘tin camera’’ talks be-
tween the Trudeau Cabinet and
CLC officials as held June 17 and
July 12 could become the avenue
of such accomodation.

It is abundantly clear that with-
out militant mass »ublic cam-

_paigning and struggle, wage con-

trols cannot be defeated .and

Oot

monopoly capitalist power to dic-
tate prices and profits cannot
be curbed. It is equally clear\that
tripartism or ‘‘social partnership”’
means class collaboration at the
workers’ expense.

Public Campaign

What is therefore urgently
needed, is a clear-cut demand
from- the grassroots — local
unions and lower central bodies
— directed to the top leader of the
CLC to exercise their mandate
now to organize and lead a public
mass campaign against wage con-
trols up to and including a general
strike.

Mass meetings, demonstra-
tions, and local work stoppages
could mean a new and more
dynamic dimension of the strug-
gle to restore meaningful collec-
tive bargaining and defeat for the
attack on labor income.

Approprate slogans for Labor
Day 1976 in this situation would
be: Kill Bill C-73! Restore and Ex-
tend the Scope of Collective Bar-
gaining! Roll Back Prices, Rents
Interest and Profits! FULL Em-
ployment Without inflation!

Any so-called New society
must be a society where no one
has the right to exploit and op-
press others. That can only be a
more long-term goal, after wage
controls and monopoly have been
defeated.

OTTAWA — Canada’s largest
union has declared itself in sup-
port of the Canadian Labor
Congress-sponsored general

strike. The 220,000 member
Canadian Union of Public em-
ployées announced recently that
the union’s national executive
board at its regular meeting July
11, decided to ‘‘participate in a
nation-wide general strike if one is
called by the CLC to combat the
federal government’s wage con-
trol legislation.

CUPE national president
Grace Hartman, said the anti-in-
flation board had effectively re-
duced wage-rate buying power
but had done nothing to hold
down prices.

Hartman said ‘‘the general
strike is a statement by workers
that they will not stand for
government action that creates
wage and price control policy and
then declares that it can’t control
prices but it will continue to con-
trol wages.”’

“The government has refused
to listen to any worker represen-
tatives’, she said, ‘“‘who have
tried to suggest positive ways of
controlling inflation without hur-
ing working people.”’

REGINA — The Saskatche-
wan Federation of Labor an-
nounced July 6 that at a meeting
of the SFL Executive Council
following a report from the SFL’s
Fight Back Committee, the SFL
‘‘will direct its efforts for the next
couple . of .months, to. building
solid provincial support for a pos-
sible national work stoppage.”’

The federation said that it was
considering ‘‘newspaper and
other advertising, leafletting, and
posters, and direct communica-
tion with local unions to encour-
age an active response from Sas-
katchewan workers to call for a
national work stoppage.”

The SFL’s Fight Back Cam-:

paign Co-ordinating Committee
will be responsible for carrying
out the necessary organizational
work.

The federation also announced
that plans would “‘be developed
for labor day activities in Sas-
katchewan around the Fight Back
program and the possible work
stoppage.”

FREDERICTON — Some 25
representatives from labor coun-
cils all across New Brunswick
met here July 10-11 to plan the
implementation of the federa-

tion’s recent convention decision
to support the call for a general
strike from the CLC.

The local union leaders dis-
cussed the massive organizing job
which needs to be done, CLC
spokesmen said, and made re-
commendations to the CLC for

sassistance such as the selection of

a specific date for the work
stoppage.

Some councils such as the one
in St. John, told the meet of their
preparations to date including as
in St. John, a continuing educa-
tional and information program.
Provincial co-ordination for the
strike, expected some time this
fall will be undertaken by the NB
Fed.

OTTAWA — The Canadian
Union of Postal Workers
(CUPW). following a recent deci-
sion of the national executive
board to support the CLC call for
a general strike and pledging to
help organize such a strike, issued
a call to its locals June 30 urging
them to pass resolutions support-
ing the strike.

A sample resolution which the
locals are being asked to endorse
reads: ‘whereas wage controls
are unjust, discriminatory, and
unacceptable to the members of
this union,

‘Be it resolved this local
wholeheartedly endorses the
CLC’s opposition to wage con-
trols and will support a CLC gen-
eral strike to force repeal of Bill
C-73.

The letter to the locals signed
by CUPW national president Joe
Davidson criticizes the talks go-
ing on between the cabinet and
the leadership of the congress say-
ing; ‘‘the consultation sessions
... will not produce results satis-
factory to organized labor. With-
out more powerful action, we will
face more Kitimats, more Elliot
Lakes, and more Thompsons.”

The letter continues: “‘there

-will be more and more contracts

within the guidelines as individual
unions cease bucking the AIB and
the state power behind it. The
final result will be the gift of bill-
ions of dollars by the workers to
the employers.”’

The union settled its last con-
tract prior to the establishment of
the controls program and they
have expressed a determined pol-
icy to ‘‘use every means possible
to protest any attempt to intro-
duce’’ wage controls in the
negotiations of the next contract.

Government economic policies

“First you spin It ke a madman, then you put on
; the brakes like crazy.”

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—JULY 23, 1976—Page 5

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