Stevens charges Combines probe CIVIC WORKERS
attempt to build case against us Five Year Plan
supported by union

. “Main purpose of the semi-secret Combines he
case against the organized fishermen,” charged Homer
lied Workers Union at the éonclusion of the inquiry

arings would appear to be to build a
Stevens of United Fishermen and Al-
into union activity Friday last week.

Stevens, who represented the union at the probe, issued the following statement on

behalf of the UFAWU:

The general executive board
of our union has witnessed al-
most four days of examination
of one union officer. Within
the first two hours of the first
day, a definite pattern of ques-
tions emerged. This pattern as
it developed made it abso-
lutely crystal clear that this

* so-called inquiry was not held

to obtain an objective account
of the union’s activities in re-
spect to collective agreements.

The main purpose of the in-
quiry would appear to be to
build a case against organized
fishermen.

Out of 3,000 pages of docu-
ments, the Combines Branch
personnel selected mainly
those minutes and correspond-
ence which dealt with strikes,
strike rules, actions against
strikebreakers arguments
and disputes between the
union and other fishermen’s
organizations. Their selection
and the questions asked by Mr.
Orr were obviously intended
to depict the union in the worst
possible light as a conspiracy
and combine.

The pre - occupation with
strikes and strikebreakers in-
dicates that the Combines
Branch is still trying to do a
job of union busting at the
behest of the small group of
qussident strikepreakers who
first launched the inquiry.

The gentral executive board
is amazed to see the terrible
waste of the taxpayers dollars
in this inquiry. Perhaps it is
partially the reason why the
public was not permitted to
attend and see how the money
of the majority is.employed in
doing a shameful job for a
group of scabs.

We attended in order to pro-

vide information and we
hoped the inquiry might be
objective. We thought the

Combines Branch might have
wanted to know the whole
truth about unions in the fish-
ing industry. We thought the
Restrictive Trade Practices
Commission might -be inter-
ested in the long uphill strug-

“gle of the fishermen to ob-

tain a reasonable living stand-
ard, to win decent working
conditions, to put an end to
discrimination, to obtain social
justice and to walk as equals
with their fellow workers. We
got the definite, unmistake-
able impression that the ef-
forts of our secretary to tell
the whole truth about the
needs and activities of the
fishermen was resented by Mr.
Orr and the Combines Branch.
Bored tolerance and impati-
ence’ was clearly expressed
every time the whole truth
was brought forward.

The Combines Branch clear-
ly wanted to pinpoint or spot-
lite the union’s efforts to stop

strikebreakers. but showed
practically no interest in why
the union periodically went on
strike.

The profit-gouging role of
the big companies was not
brought out except by volun_
tary statements by the union.
It seemed almost as if it was
painful to Mr. Orr and not in
good taste to raise such ques-
tions: The fact that the fish
company policy is to hold
down the pay to fishermen
and allied workers and to
charge the consumer all the
traffic will bear seemed to
have no place in this inquiry.

At no iime has any question
indicated any concern about
the sale of fish to the con-
sumer by the fish merchants
or of sales by the fishing com-
panies.

Obviously, the union is not
involved in:such’ transactions.
However, we. are concerned
about the tremendous spread
between our minimum prices
and the exhorbitant prices
paid by the consumers. Surely
our opinions and. evidence of
this nature should have been
requested.

To put it* bluntly, we get
the impression there is no in-
tention of protection to con-
sumers in this inquiry al-
though the Act was originally
designed for precisely such
protection to consumers.

We know the Combines Act
was designed to probe monop-
olies, trusts, mergers and to
protect the consumers irom
profit - gouging corporations.
Now its being turned upside
down. The laws drafted to
protect the small man from bif
business are now being mis-
used to help big fishing com-
panies to hold down the work-
ing people in this inquiry.

The kindest words we can
express are that, except for a
few attempts to the contrary,

we were not stopped from
speaking at any time. How-
ever, specially arranged ques-
tions are like loaded” dice.
There can only be one outcome
because it is clear the Com-
bines Branch is not interested
in justice but is striving
mightily for-a conviction. This
is a disgraceful situation and
should never exist in a branch
of the Department of Justice.

Justice rests on objectivity,
on the whole truth, on assum-
ing innocence until guilt is
proven, on the fullest exami-
nation of the facts. Without
these ingredients there can be
no justice. This inquiry is sad-
ly lacking in its failure to job
objective. The one-sided pat-
tern of questions showed only
a zealous desire to prove guilt.
Nothing else was of any con-
sequence.

Perhaps we are wasting our
time but we feel compelled to
make a further statement. Per-
haps all our efforts to round
out the picture, to show why
the union adopted rules, to
prove the need for a union will
{all on deaf ears. Nevertheless,
we Gannot leave the inquiry
entirely to the discretion of
persons who display one-sided
tendencies. The big fishing
companies would rejoice, the
American abusers of anti-trust
laws would likewise rejoice
and ‘the organized fishermen
would suffer if we failed to
state the positive side of the
picture. We want an oppor-
tunity to prepare it, to submit
it, to answer questions on it
and we hope it will be listened
to and heard in public.

Vancouver’s Outside Civic
Employees are making a big
drive to mobilize their mem-
bers in support of the Five-
Year Capital Development
Plan, which will be placed be-
voters on

fore Vancouver

December 11.

In a recent issue of the

union’s Newsbulletin, it was
pointed out that a rejection at
the polls would mean that “all
new public work construction
in Vancouver would come to a
-halt for six years.”

“To our members,. it would
mean layoffs in sewers, roads,
pavements, waterworks and
related branches. It would in-
evitably .affect members em-
ployed in maintenance work

. because when money is,

scarce, the economy axe has a
tendency to swing in every
direction.”

Secretary Jack Phillips
pointed out that of the $72,500,-
000 involved, $50 milion is of
“direct and urgent concern” to
his union. This money would
be spent, on engineering, parks
and the Pacific National Exhi-
bition. :

“However, we are not sup-
porting the bylaw from a nar-
row, — selfish viewpoint. We
need the jobs involved, but we
want to do useful work. We
believe that all the projects
listed are necessary bread and
butter projects for a growing
city. As a matter of fact, we
don’t think the plan goes far

Co-op bookstore plans
move to new premises

After more than nine

years in its present location, the

People’s Co-op Bookstore has decided to move to larger and

more modern premises at 307 West Pender Street.

The direc-

tors of the Co-op are of the opinion that the move is essential
in order to provide better service to the shareholders and the

public.

The estimated cost will be in

the neighborhood of

$4,000, of which $1,500 must be raised by the sale of shares

by January 13, 1958.

The new and. modern prem-
ises will provide twice the
present floor space, 25 per-
cent more shelf space at eye
level, facilities for attractive
progressive, _
print displays, an office and
mai? order department, and
will enable the store to carry
a-small selection of literature
in the French, Ukrainian, Pol-
ish and Russian languages.

Since its inception in “1948
the store has played a leading
role in the distribution of pro-
gressive and classical litera-

record and art

ture to British Columbia’s

reading public and is the larg-—

est and most successful store
of its kind in Canada.

Starting from a very modest
beginning it has prospered and
grown slowly but steadily and
in 1956 and 1957 was abte to
declare patronage dividends
payable to its shareholders.

These dividends were 10 per-
cent in 1956 and five percent
in 1957 and were paid to the
shareholders on the basis of
total purchases made by each
shareholder in those years.

November 22, 1957 —

enough.” :
When asked if this plan
would mean an increase in

taxes, Phillips replied:

“According to City Hall, it
will cost the average home-
owner $3.85 a year. But if the
tax base is extended, or if we

get tax reform, or if the senior
governments would take over
the entire cost of elementary
education, we could have more
public works and still cut
taxes.”

The union official said he is
pleased that the plan proposes
to increase expenditures for
roads, sewer, waterworks,
streetlighting and parks.

“Much of this work is long
overdue. For example, this
year it cost thé city a quarter
of a million dollars to repait
leaks in defective water pipes:
Under the new plan, a start
will be made in replacing these
steel and wooden mains with
cast iron pipes. Also, there will
be a new machine shop and
central garage to replace the
present, outdated units.

“Items like a swimming pool
at Riley Park, a new incinet!”
ator, expressways and a civic
square cannot be called lux —
uries.”

When asked if his union's
support for the bylaw mean
support for Non-Partisan cap”
didates, Phillips replied “Certs
tainly not!”

“As far as we can gather, 2°”
candidates are opposing thé
Five-Year Plan. This me@
that there is common agre@
ment: up to that point. Beyont
this point, we must examine
the record. and program. 0
every group. contesting t
election and vote according):
Personally, as a union mam
am very pleased that the Va?
couver Labor Council has ©
tered three candidates in
aldermanic race. This me@ (
that organized labor in var
couver has announced it
ready to assume the respons
bility of administering the ar
fairs of our city. I consid
this a most significant deve!
opment, worthy of the atte
tion of every union mem asf
every friend of labor and eye
reform-minded person.”

nn

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