The B.C. Peace Council will again be entering a float in the Pacifi float will be encircled with white cardboard figures with hands and work for peace.’ Photo above showsthefloatin 1966w actions against the war in Vietnam. eae ¢ National Exhibition parade August 18. The joined symbolizing the theme, ‘‘Join hands hen the Peace Council spearheaded many Grape boycott needs support By ALD. HARRY RANKIN The call for a boycott of all California and Arizona grapes has my full support. It deserves support first of all because it will help U.S. migratory farm workers led by Cesar Chavez to secure union, recognition and decent wages and working condi- tions. Secondly, it deserves support because these farm workers are fighting against the excessive use of pesticides which harm both the farm workers and the consuming public. The United Farm Workers, after a five year long struggle helped by anextensive boycott of U.S. grapes by the B.C. public, did manage to secure a con- tract with California grape growers. The contract was up for renewal April 14 of this year and negotiations for a new con- CUPE protests employer violations In their continuing dispute with the management of the Quarry House Restaurant on Vancouver’s Little Mountain, the Canadian Union of Public Employees wired provincial labor minister King Monday demanding that Bowmann and Sons, operators of the restau- rant, be instructed to comply with the Labor Relations Board which earlier had ordered rein- statement of five fired em- ployees. The five were fired some weeks ago as a result of their activities in organizing the workers into CUPE. In vio- lation of the Labor Relations Act, the dismissal came when the application for certification was before the Labor Relations Board and CUPE successfully pressed charges for unlawful labor practices. Contending that he was comply- ing with the order, the employ- er instructed the five employ- ees to punch inonevery sched- uled working day and then ordered them to leave the prem- ises. They have not yet received any wages for the time. CUPE protested the employ- er’s tactics and pointed out in the wire to King that ‘“‘if employer can openly flout a Labor Rela- tions Board order to reinstate employees who were improp- erly dismissed then there is no protection for workers under the Labor Relations Act.”’ Employees at therestaurant view the refusal to comply with the order as further evidence that the employer is collabor- ating with the Hotel and Restau- rant Employees Unioninanat- tempt to frustrate the efforts of CUPE to win bargainingrights in the Quarry House. Ray Wilkin- son, James Farrell, Douglas Schaeffer, Kathy Hoult and Nancy Poisson, the five who were fired, were instrumental in organizing the employees into CUPE initially and are allegedly being deliberately kept out untilafter the comple- tion of a representation vote be- tween CUPE and the Restau- rant Employees Unionexpected some time within the next two weeks. Inhis reply tothe CUPE wire sent Monday, deputy labor min- ister William Sands informed > the union that, if the Labor Rela- tions Board order is not com- plied with inside a 14 day period, the Act provides for applica- tions to the Supreme Court for enforcement. CUPE officials ‘ indicated Tuesday that they intended to pursue the action. _ jailed in an effort to bree al 3 he old wisecrack that talk is cheap no longer holds true. Viewed from the angle of Establishment boards, committees and investigation seances, ithas become just about the most expensive item for which the public has to foot the bill. Whenever an administration, be it municipal, provincial or federal, is confronted with a knotty problem affecting the public weal, it sets up a board or acommittee or a similar sort of body to give special study to the problem and bring downa ‘“‘report.’’ Such boards or committees invariably consist of several good party heelers, pocket a hefty stipend when they are sitting, prepare a voluminousreportonthe matter with recommendations attached (which aremore oftenthannot ignored) and the report lands in the appropriate archives to gather dust. On occasion, it will serve some aspiring politician witha bit of ammunition for which John Q. Public has paid a stiff price— and got nothing in return. Take the present Prices Review Board as anexample. No teeth to do anything about skyrocketting prices, even if it wanted to— which it doesn’t. It wasn’t the intention of its Liberal parentage that it should. But talk in abundance— with the stipend assured. And the talk never gets around to whata few million Canadians already know too well— that they are being robbed blind every day by gigantic food monopolies which have become a law unto themselves in the vocation of price racketeering. Monopolies so big and powerful that they have been virtually transformed into a permanent invisible government. Yet this toothless board, gummingits way througha maze of monopoly excuses for price gouging, continues to ‘Stalks '— and collect from the public purse with the help of its Liberal creators. Sucha board, of course, is not unique in Canadian history. There have been scores of them since Confederation, producing voluminous reports, killing time, drawing fat salaries and talking, talking, talking, for the ‘‘enlightenment” and impoverishment of the common man. And all the average taxpayer has to show for all this talk isa mountain of dead reports covered with the dust of time. From the point of view of the Establishment, all such boards are valuable and well worth the money spent. They help to stall the processes of government, to take mass attention off the vexing problem at issue, avoid a probable crisis on the matter, save face for the powers-that-be, buy forgetfulness of the masses who are paying the shot and, not the least important, leave the monopoly barons to carry on their profiteering unhampered. Moreover, should it be found necessary to go through the same performance with each succeeding generation, the previous record of marathon talking can be dusted off and used as a precedent or guide for the next talkathon. If some bright boy in Ottawa or Victoria or in any city were to set himself the task of compiling a “‘report on reports’’ made by all such boards and committees, he might arrive at the approximate cost to the taxpayer, the little tangible results that were achieved and how the art of ‘‘fooling most of the people most of the time”’ has worked fairly well until now. It would be a massive undertaking but well worth the time. Committee reports ‘‘investigating’’ Canada’s war scandals in two world wars still rest peacefully under their dust coatings in the Parliamentary archives in Ottawa. These revealing documents emphasize the simple truth: much talk with little action, costly in the extreme to the people who bore all the burdens of the war in blood and dollars, but highly profitable to the monopoly ghouls who racketeered in war production. When the reports of all the talking were in, little or nothing happened, except for the presentation of afew knighthoods or other honors. And the public paid the cost and paid heavily. _ Now we are being promised more “‘investigation”’ gabfests — onthe monopoly robbery of our naturalresources, onour avenues of communication, on our transportation systems etc, and ad infinitum. More talk, more waste of the taxpayers. money. ‘‘How long, O Lord, how long?’’ Right wing NDP ‘“socialism’’ provides no answer so monopoly grows and flourishes. And the talk without action abounds. DAT = EWE SE TAIQUA YAO PACIFIC TRIBUNE—FRIDAY, AUGUST 17, 1978—PAGE 2) £3 GHEE o we tract were proceeding. Then suddénly the growers # nounced that they had signed@! agreement with the Westel Conference of the Teamste® Union. The Farm worke! charged that this was a “sie heart’ agreement,”’ thatis,o™ signed between the big corpo! tion growers and the leader j the Teamsters without Bi Teamsters signing up a= the workers. ; In each key area of thet™ tract, the leaders of the Teall | sters signed for less that” United Farm Workers: 9) agreed to a wage redu i they agreed to abolish the ute hiring hall and so againoPy, F the door for the vicious > up’? system of hiring We : enabled the growers to disc, inate as they please against ; vidual workers, and oi dropped the demand for b of tests to check on pesticide fects on workers. ' = = So = Farm Workers with ne native but to strike whe of did. Collusion between the a a ers, the leaders of the fa sters and California ee | forces resulted in the a goons and strike-breakel® i mass arrests of farm worke of five days over 1, | workers were arresté wit Se ee ea See gear ea ae wo strike and the Farm Union. aati This*is not a jurisdie fe struggle between tw0 uni? ti workers representation | direct case of theleadet aii) Teamsters Union acting viel! sion with the growers jit the Farm Workers unit iol not the kind of action trade is Hy ! ists can endorse and 1 ail wonder, therefore, ! of rank and file membe? = ff j \ ( Wels SS pe i Te, et 2 yr pe Teamsters Union 4%? elf orting the farm yi eins such anti-unio? Py tices by Teamster lead? central issue is thet? 4 se most brutally exploiter | ol of the American Wor nice * to join the union of its © negotiate decent w conditions. 0 In B.C. the boycott og fornia and Arizona grap for by the farm wor ceived the endorseme® b B.C. Federation of bt the national convent! N.D.P. as well as ™* OM groups including * ple mittee of Progress! (COPE). ’ World Congress i ity § Forces will hold deta | national butte d urday, August ie Hull Street in vancoU ranted } of the many events ise se the campaign to 18 eda thousand dollars nev orld A delegates to the robe : gress in Moscow in gol of the buffet is thre® 11bee person, and there W ypitt tainmentas we phant sale. ds B.C. plans tose” gress delegates to the CO” se senting a proad a the people of Brit