CHALLENGE 80 CONFERENCE By VERNA LEDGER Director Safety and Health Regional Council No. 1, IWA The Workers’ Compensation Board in co-operation with the International Wood- workers of America, and Council of Forest Industries organized a major conference in Vancouver on October 30 and 31, 1980 to deal with a range of health and safety concerns within the forest products industry. Challenge For The 80’s was the title given the two-day conference, which was attended by over 800 delegates representing union and management workers within the forest industry. The Workers’ Compensation Board had suggested the conference in 1979 in response to the rising toll of injuries and fatalities in the forest industry. When the conference was given the go ahead early in 1980, a planning committee was established with two members from the WCB, one member from the IWA and one member from COFI. The planning group developed the title “Challenge For The 80’s’’, with the idea that it would be a working seminar which would bring all concerned parties together in an attempt to provide an avenue for discussion and hopefully agreement on new methods of approach to serious problems. Unfortunately many aspects of the con- ference were not conducive to developing those solutions. For one thing the sheer size of the conference (800 delegates) prevented any sort of workshop or opportunity for discussion between the attending groups. Secondly, the presentation made by Don Lanskail, Chairman of Council of Forest Industries at the first day luncheon, was not designed to inject enthusiasm amongst the delegates towards a co-operative effort. In fact his remarks based on outdated, out- moded rhetoric which blames ‘careless workers’ for 90% of all injuries, only served to inflame union members as well as many management delegates and did nothing to subdue the all too common advisary approach to health and safety. In addition his attack upon the IWA Regional Safety Policy, in particular the section dealing with disciplinary action so enraged IWA delegates that they were prepared to walk out of the conference. Fortunately cooler heads prevailed, and following an IWA caucus, delegates decided to stay. They felt the issue of developing solutions to serious health and safety problems was more important than show- ing their disapproval of remarks made by the luncheon speaker. However many felt that Mr. Lanskail’s remarks may reflect the true feelings of the majority of management people and in that case there was little hope for a productive conference. Brother Jack Munro was the luncheon speaker on the second day and IWA members were particularly proud of his response to Don Lanskail’s remarks. Brother Munro, as usual calling a spade a spade, berated Mr. Lanskail for his back- ward, outdated approach to health and safety. But the major portion of his speech dealt with the reasons the IWA had agreed to participate in the conference. He dealt positively with proposals and otha ie ‘ )- f, ‘ \a ; x * : ; c=, & Challenge 80 delegates attending one of the conference sessions. possible solutions and suggested areas we should be considering in our development of programs. Brother Munro assured the WCB ¢ and the COFI that the IWA would do its ~ part if they were serious about a co-opera- tive effort aimed at developing solutions. The conference was the first of its kind, and while certainly some criticism is war- ranted, at least it was a step in the right direction. All concerned parties had at last been brought together in one place and most delegates concluded that this type of ex- change must continue. Hopefully further conferences will be held, possibly in various regions of the Province, with more opportunity for work- shops and discussion. Hopefully new avenues and approaches to health and safety can be explored with some definite commitment to change. That is really ‘the challenge of the 80's’. SASKATCHEWAN SETS NEW PENSION STANDARDS By MICHAEL DECTER CPA Correspondent Amendments to the Saskatchewan Pen- sion Benefits Act point to a major program of pension reform in that province. The changes also confront Canada’s $50 billion pension business with a new set of stand- ards. As with medicare two decades ago, Saskatchewan is pioneering changes in a policy field that is often discussed but infrequently challenged by action. Canada’s pensioners have not been pro- vided with the security necessary to main- tain a decent standard of living. This issue can only grow in importance as the portion of the population over 65 expands. Inflation has wreaked havoc with pension benefits and wide disparities have emerged between indexed public sector pensions and often unprotected pensions in the private sector. Saskatchewan’s general thrust is to require employers to contribute more and earlier to employee pensions. Standard practice for vesting in Canada is currently after 10 years or more service and age 45. The new rule in Saskatchewan will reduce vesting requirements to a total of 45 for age plus years of service. Therefore, with 10 years of service vesting would take place at age 35. This dramatic improvement will assure many more employees that they will receive accrued benefits from pension contributions of employers. The very low rate of interest often applied to employee contributions in private pen- sion plans is now to be regulated to ensure greater inflation protection. As well, a greater option for a lump sum payment is created with the amendments. In his second reading speech on the pension changes in June, Saskatchewan’s Minister of Labour, Gordon Snyder, noted that Saskatchewan was “breaking ranks” with the previous uniformity in the pension field. With no prospect of joint action toward ~~ change in sight, Snyder declared that Saskatchewan considered the changes so important tha the province was willing to assume a leadership role. The changes are expected to cause some concerns for pension plans in other jurisdictions as well as sparking action. In concluding his remarks, Snyder left the door wide open for further change in the near future. “I would like to reiterate that these amendments are but one step in addressing the retirement income problem. Further measures to ensure greater savings for retirement by persons not participating ay the private pension system will be need- ed. This has prompted speculation that Sas @ katchewan may be considering following = the lead of Quebec in establishing its own provincial pension plan. _ The pension issue is likely to hold the interest of policy makers and draw the concern of the aging Canadian workforce during the next decade. Whether the leader- ship on the provision of decent retirement mcomes comes from Ottawa or from the provinces may be one of the key determi- nants of the perception of our nation’s unity and ability. 8/Lumber Worker/Nov.-Dec., 1980 Cee wade . :