ee ee ee ee ee ee Se ee em oe ' Auxiliary wants - Coast Guard A demand that Ottawa act immediately to establish a coastguard for Canada was unanimously endorsed by delegates attending the sixth annual convention of Womens Auxiliaries - “Second vice-president, to the United Fishermen and all-day session Sunday this week. “Primary task -of the present air-sea rescue service “is not that of saving lives and rescuing ves- sels in distress,” said the resolu- _ tion, pointing out ‘that these sea and air craft may be far from the scene of a tragedy, and also might be called off a search at any time. ‘ ‘ Other key resolutions called or: ® Immediate enactment of a national health insurance scheme “which would be standard in all provinces.” The federal government to press for outlawing of atomic and hydrogen weapons and the destruction of existing stockpiles. Full coverage for all fisher- men under workmen’s com- pensation, unemployment insurance for all commercial fishermen, and amendment of the Unemployment Insur- ance Act to fully protect seasonal workers. .© A provincial grant to cities and municipalities to con- struct additional community centres and sports facilities. Increased old age pensions. Specified items (including clothing and school supplies) to be exempted from the five percent provincial Sales tax. The following officers were _ elected: ; | President, Myrtle Schule; first Vice-president, Eileen McEachern; Frances Munsen; vice-president, third Margaret Furiak; secretary, Grace |. Stevens; treasurer, Mary Wil- Cox; membership chairman, Julia Rigby; press and publicity, Pat] _Hilland. Magnaiavaneneuene Castle Jewelers Watchmaker and Jewelers Special Discount to all Tribune Read- ars. Bring this ad with you 752 Granville St. rill Tih " eee he does is pick at Zz Everything in clothes and fur- Shings for men and young Men. Ask about our FREE CREDIT PLAN to buy them. ‘March 28 it will be Allied Workers’ Union at an Call goes out for this year’s May Day meet - Preparations for Vancouver’s 1956 May Day celebration got underway this week with the issuing of a call for a delegate conference of labor and progres- sive organizations by the May Day Continuations Committee. Over the signature of acting lowing letter was sent out: “It is a pleasure for us to an- nounce that plans are already being considered for the holding of the 1956 May Day parade. “So that a full’ 1956 committee may be elected and in order to commence discussion and plan- ning for this important, annual event, your Continuations Com- mittee has arranged for a dele- gate conference of all interested organizations to be held at 8 p.m. Wednsday, March 28 in Pen- der Auditorium, 339 West Pender Street. late a date with the result that some unnecessary difficulties were encountered. oe is hoped f ling our conference on sacha tee possible to overcome these difficulties through more careful planning and make the 1956 parade some- thing which we will Jong remem- ber. his “There is no limit to the num- ber of delegates you can send to the conference—the main thing is to have a delegate or delegates in attendance from all organiza- tions which are interested in the cause’ of working people the world over and to whom May Day has a special significance. ee ee Unique Chinese film to have B.C. premiere A unique film from People’s China, Liang Shan-Po, 1s to be given its British Columbia pre- miere on Friday, April 20, at Pender Auditorium here. The film, photographed in a striking new color process, 1S based on a seventeenth century era, Shan Po and Ying-Tai, with all parts played by women performers. Its running time, 1s a half hours. Bie eet sponsored by the B.C. Council of the Congress of Canadian Women, will be open to the public. * Hours: Daily , 9- 5 339 W. PENDER ST. secretary A. L. Gordon, the fol- “Last year arrangements for |' \the parade were left until too “What’s Behind Sommer’s Resignation — A Report on the Legislature,” will be the subject of an address by LPP provincial leader Nigel Morgan (above) at Oddfellows Hall, Haney, Tuesday, March 27 at 8 p.m. * Morgan has just completed a one-week tour of Vancouver Island, during which he spoke at . Courtenay, Cumberland, Campbell River, Nanaimo, Dun- can, Victoria and Port Alberni. Effie fighting higher taxes Effie Jones, president of Civic Reform Association, will appear at City Hall on Friday this week to protest higher taxes on homes, mooted by Vancouver City Council recently. Appealing to home owners to support her stand, Mrs. Jones is- sued a leaflet this week which has been distributed: widely in all parts of the city. “City council will soon set tax rates for 1956,” said her appeal. “Taxes on your home will be higher gnless you join forces with your neighbors: “The big business NPA council has almost doubled taxes on housing in 10 years. Taxes on homes are the highest they have ever been and will go higher unless you tell City Hall in no uncertain terms that you are not going to take it this year.” Mrs. Jones said there are two things council can do to hold the taxes down: 1—Send a delegation to Vic- toria at once to demand larger grants. (Council has failed to fight hard enough for grants from senior governments which ( “are expecting, this year, big- ger revenues than ever.) .2—Cut the 50 percent tax free exemption on commercial and business property-improve- ments. (Homeowners have been made to carry too large a load. It is not fair that profit making properties should have the same exemptions as homes.) Assessments on homes went up sharply for 1956. Assessments on older homes were boosted as much as 30 percent. , Cassiar and Grandview rate- payer associations havé already made protests against any fur- ther tax increases. Mrs. Jones suggested that citi- zens should write city council de- manding no new taxes on homes this year. Homeowners should also phone Mayor Hume and aldermen at City Hall, EM 1313, and lodge protests. Merger reopens issue for parley Affiliation to labor has brought many benefits to B.C. teachers A question of fundamental im-. portance to the province’s 8,000 teachers is expected to comes be- fore the April convention of the British Columbia School Teach- ers Federation. Delegates may be called upon to decide whether the BCTF shall maintain its tie with organized labor by entering the new Canadian Labor Congress or whether it shall sever the 13-year old link with the trade uniof movement established in 1943 when it affiliated to the Trades and Labor Congress of Canada. The question was- opened last December when the BCTF Labor Relations Committee published “The pros and cons of labor af- filiation” in the B.C. Teacher in a‘strictly, almost painfully, neut- ral article. : In the 13 years since the BCTF affiliated with the trade union movement, teachers have made impressive advances in salary scales and in working conditions. In 1942, when the BCTF con- vention voted for®labor affilia- tion, salaries‘were still at depres- sion levels and rural teachers faced particularly difficult con- ditions. Few of the 400 school districts by which the teachers were em- ployed would accept collective bargaining principles and very small groups of teachers present- ing their demands to hostile school boards were open to intimidation and discrimination, particularly BEAUTIFUL PEKING ALL WOOL RUGS yUST ARRIVED FROM CHINA Assorted Colors, Patterns, an * Also Lovely Linens, Hand Embroidered ; Large Assortment Guaranteed Finest Quality & Lowest Prices * WE INVITE YOU TO CALL AT East-West Export Import Co. Ltd. j d Sizes 2x3 to 9x12 — Saturday, 9-12 : : PHONE: MA 6615 since they were frozen to their’ jobs. The trade union movement in industry had already won for itself the basic collective bargain- ing -rights teachers themselves were demanding and proponents fof labor affiliation found increas- ing sympathy for their argu- ments that organised labor would fight for teachers’ needs and sup- port their program for education. Following approval of labor af- filiation by the 1942 convention, the BCTF entered the trade union movement in 1943 by be- coming a national union of the Trades and Labor Congress. Few BCTF locals, however, carried through the affiliation by sending delegates to local labor councils, notable exceptions outside Van- couver being New Westminster and Nanaimo. After 1943 teachers rapidly improved their conditions. The provincial government appoint- ed the Cameron. Commission and implemented many of its findings. Teachers were able to establish collective bargain- ing rights and to obtain, as a result, long overdue upward revision of salary scales. Today, after 13 years of affili- ation to the trade union: move- ment, the BCTF to all appearances is in a strong position. But a sharp reminder that teachers may need the united support of org- anized labor to maintain what they have won was _ recently given by the B.C. School Trustees Association. The B.C. School Trustees Asso- ciation accused the BCTF of spreading false propaganda by its claim that teachers’ salaries are still low and thereby dis- couraging entry into the profes- sion. It accused the BCTF of refusing to discuss a “merit sys- tem” «which, according to the B.C. School ‘Trustees Association, would lead to better salaries but which, in reality, would weaken established salary categories. Those who would like to weak- among some teachers that labor affiliation is incompatible with professional status. Once* the Jabor tie had been severed, they would strive to dismember the BCTF by setting elementary against secondary teachers, pitting one category against another, offering bonuses — the so-called “merit rating” ° plan — to destroy all that the BCTF has accomplished in rais- ing living standards of teachers as employees of school boards and their standing as profession- al workers. _The strongest argument for continuation of trade union af- filiation is the fact that it has helped to raise teachers’ salar- ies and so to raise the profes- sional standard of teaching by attracting those prepared to re- gard it as their life’s work. = Projectionists ready strike for demands After negotiating with Odeon a year, projectionists have voted to take strike action March 31 to back their demands for a new contract. They are asking a five percent wage inerease and a pen- sion plan in addition to layoff benefits. The B.C. Projectionists Union (AFL-TLC) approved strike ac- tion this week after rejecting a conciliation board report recom- mending $2,500 severance pay for men laid off by conversion to one-man operation. . en the BCTF by securing its disaffiliation from the trade union ize upon the persisting feeling movement are trying to capital-| MARCH 23, 1956 — PACIFIC TRIBUNE — PAGE 7 . and Famous Players for almost