A2 Terrace Review —— Wednesday, September 4, 199}

If there is any hope of an arly,
settlement in the “current” postal
dispute, it was not reflected in a
statement made by Canada Post
vice-president of human resources
and administration Harold Dunster
during an Ottawa press conference
yesterday moming. The balding
bureaucrat said, "I have more
chance -of growing a full head of
hair by noon than there is of ever
reaching a collective agreement
with the Canadian Union of Postal
Workers under the current circum-
stances."

Although the postal situation
around the Northwest was more Or
less normal yesterday, the same

Hospital — Continued from page Al

announce bed closures and layoffs.

Public outcry, though, and a
petition that gathered over 12,000
signatures in just 12 days attracted
the attention of Minister of Health
Bruce Strachan. A meeting took
place between the society board,
hospital management and Strachan
on July 22. As a result, it was
agreed that Walker would be hired
to investigate the situation at Mills
Memorial at _ the ministry’s
expense, and both the society and
Strachan agreed to abide by his
findings.

During a subsequent press con-
ference, Strachan became the first
Minister of Health ever to tour

- Mills Memorial Hospital and con-
clude that the services offered
there were indeed regional. And
given that fact, he acknowledged
that Walker’s investigation might
identify a need for additional fund-
ing to maintain that regional ser-
vice. oo

“This consultant," Strachan said
during that press conference, "is

Terrace mail was slowed down for two days last week as_
rotating strikes hit the local office, but CUPW was back at work
Tuesday. Yesterday afternoon Canada Post officials said there
appears to be no easy end in sight.

Strike == Continued from page Al

The primary issue standing in the way of an agreement, Mac- —
- Cormac said, is the federal government’s removal-of provisions
for collective bargaining of pay. In the latest federal budget
Finance Minister Michael Wilson limited pay increases to federal-
ly employed bargaining units to a maximum of zero, three and
three percent over the next three years. Wilson stated in the
budget that federal departments settling for more than that rate
will have to cut staff to keep their budgets in line. MacCormac
said the last time public sector unions had to Geal with a situ-
ation like this one was in the mid-1970’s when Pierre Trudeau
imposed wage and price controls. Over the past year, Mac-
Cormac noted, the cost of living has increased 6.1 percent nation-
ally.

The most recent quarterly report from Labour Canada,
covering the second quarter of 1991, noted a distinct drop in the
level of public sector wage increases over the previous quarter —
3.3 percent, compared to 6.4 percent in the first quarter. Labour
Minister Marcel Denis attributed the decline to public sector
wage restraints adopted by some of the provinces.

Private sector settlements also dropped slightly, with average
increases of 5.1 percent. The first quarter of the year averaged

If you don’t know
what’s going on,
things go on
without you.

couldn’t be said of the situation in
the lower mainland and several
other major centres across the
country. Canada Post communica-
tions officer Ilona Beiks said at

‘noon yesterday that mail services

in the lower mainland, with the
exception of Surrey and the Fraser
Valley, were not operational. And
on Vancouver Island, postal
workers in Courtenay, Campbell
River and Nanaimo were also
manning picket lines.

Beiks says CUPW negotiators
turned down the latest Canada Post
offer Monday night and since then
talks have broken off. She says

) Postal strike still far from

settlement, official says

Canada Post wil! advise the union
of their next move soon, but she
was unable to say just what that
move might be. Canada Post con-
tinues to work with their original
contingency plan, according to
Beiks, but it has not been effective
where union leaders are illegally
picketing temporary Canada Post
distribution centres.

She adds that an injunction was
granted Canada Post in B.C. court
to halt the illegal picketing, but so
far the order has been ignored by
workers in the lower mainland and
the police appear to be doing little .
to enforce it.

going to work with the hospital to
identify opportunities for cost
savings that should identify a
balanced budget and identify
money for other programs." At the
same time, however, Strachan
pointed out that if Walker ident-
ifies “cost pressures" which cannot
be met within the current budget,
his ministry will cover the short-
fail.

Walker’s final funding recom-
mendations are expected to be
close to the society’s original
estimate of a $270,000 funding
shortfall, and it will be covered by

‘a combination of cost saving fac-

tors and additional funding. But
additional funding isn’t the most
important factor stemming from
Walker’s recommendations, says
Lane, The most significant result
will be a more efficient hospital.

Also significant is the fact that his
recommendations establish once
and for all that Mills Memorial
Hospital is a regional centre, a
view that supports further develop-
ment. |

Lane says the society has already
made the next step towards further
development by requesting a meet-
ing between the Dr. R.E.M, Lee
Hospital Foundation chairman,
Marlaine Webber, himself and
Strachan. The purpose. of that
meeting will be to establish that
Strachan will live up to a commit-
ment made by former Minister of.
Heaith John Jansen.

As Minister of Health, Jansen
told the society more than a year
ago that if they could raise the
money to purchase a CT scanner,
the Ministry of Health would pay
all ongoing operational and main-

tenance costs including staffing.

| Public Information Meetings
ORENDA FOREST PRODUCTS LTD.

PROPOSED PULP

AND PAPER MILL

Public Information Meetings will be held to outline

Orenda's proposal to develop

Dubose site, about 25km south of Terrace.

project is subject to review un
rocess (MPRP).

For residents of Kitimat - September 1
Mount Elizabeth

Public Information Meeting at The

a pulp and paper mill at the

he proposed

der the Major Project Review

1, 7:00 p.m.
Theatre, Kitimat, B.C.

*For residents of Lakelse and Terrace - Septertber 1 6:00 p.m
Public Information Meeting at the R.E.M. Lee Theatre, Terrace B.C.

Representatives of the company will provide interested
parties with general information on the project. A
representative of the Major Project Steering Committee will
explain the MPRP, and how the public can participate in the
review process.

A drop-in style open house will be held to provide members
of the community with information and an opportunity to meet
with representatives of Orenda Forest Products Ltd. about the
proposed development in an informal setting. This meeting
will be held in Lakelse Lake on September 10, 4:00 p.m. at
the Mt. Layton Hot Springs Resort.

_ A prospectus, which describes the project and its potential
impacts, has been released for pubic review. The Prospectus
is available for review at the Kitimat, Terrace, Smithers and
Vancouver Public Libraries, at the Government
in Kitimat, Terrace, Prince George, Stewart and Smithers and
Terrace offices of The Ministry Of Environment. Members of
the public wishing to submit written comments on the
Prospectus are asked to do so by Friday, October 11, 1991.

Please forward your written comments to:

Mr. David Parsons
MPRP Coordinator
B.C. Environment

Environmental Assessment Branch
4rd Floor, 777 Broughton Street
Victoria, British Columbia
| ; VBV 1X5
*Note the change of time and place. This meeting has been
changed to accommodate residents of Lakelse and will
include an extended question and answer period.

read the
Terrace Review

5.6 percent,
MacCormac said the PSAC members from the Terrace-Kitimat
area have a strategy session scheduled for tonight.

CrFace

D

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