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By GORD MASSIE
REGINA — Concern over trade union rights and the
economic crisis were vividly expressed in the debates
and resolutions of the 25th annual’ Saskatchewan
Federation of Labor convention, Oct. 16-18.
More than 450 delegates took part in the three day
Meet which was launched with a healthy debate and
Unanimous support for a resolution by the Saskatchewan
Government Employees Association (SGEA) demand-
‘Ing the repeal of section 11-2-d of the provincial Trade
Union Act.
Under this section of Saskatchewan labor law, the
SGEA was ordered by the courts to end its strike last

was the crucial issue of labor’s right to strike with many
delegates voicing criticism of dangerous trends in the
Province including legislation by Saskatchewan s New
Democratic Party government tending to limit this right.

_ A policy paper ‘Trade Union Rights and Social Jus-
tice’”’ was a unifying factor at the convention. Reflecting
Many resolutions submitted by local unions throughout
the province, the main thrust of the paper was accepted

by the delegates though its vagueness in terms of specific
action proposals was criticized.

December. At the heart of the debate over the resolution .

. ee
Push on to repeal anti-strike laws

The SFL’s concern about threats to trade union rights
were expressed in the paper with demands for deletion of
section 11-2-d of the Trade Union Act, stengthening of
the law’s provisions guaranteeing the right to strike, and
opposing the use of injunctions in labor disputes.

Although to a different degree, the economic crisis
gripping Cariada also operates in Saskatchewan and the
federation reflected it in their paper. ‘*Saskatchewan

workers have felt the brutal effects of wage controls, °

employers’ guidelines, rising inflation, etc., on their
wages and standards of living’’, the document noted.

“In opposition to. government and employers’ initia-
tives to curb the effectiveness of free collective bar-
gaining, we must speak with a united voice and be pre-
pared to take collective action, public, private and craft
unions together, to oppose infringements on our rights.”
The SFL declared: ‘‘If and when necessary, we must be
prepared to again show the solidarity of Canadian work-
ers as we did on the historical day of October 14th,
1976.”

The growing trends towards broader unity of all
democratic forces were evident in the paper’s call for the
SFL. to encourage closer ties with native Indian groups
to ensure the development of Saskatchewan’s northland

‘

US. WOMEN FACE BLEAK FUTURE UNDER REAGAN

PHOTO — TASS

clearly favored affiliation to the NDP, there was a con-

under public ownership and control for the benefit of all
Saskatchewan’s people. —

The paper went on to urge ‘‘the SFL to work closely
with the Canadian Labor Congress and the National
Farmers Union to seek solutions to the problems that
face Western farmers including retention of the Crow
Rates,” and urged labor to ‘‘pressure for public owner-
ship and control of the rail system ...”’

The federation renewed its affiliation to the NDP in a
resolution calling on the SFL to set up a Political Educa-
tion Fund to support trade union candidates running for
municipal, provincial'or federal office. While the debate

siderable demand from delegates that such support must
not stand in the way of the federation’s ability to conduct
its own independent political action.

Two extreme positions were revealed-in the debate
over this resolution. Those on the NDP’s right wing
argued that electoral activity around the NDP should be
everything and independent labor political action should ©
be minimal.

Way out, at the other extreme, were pseudo-left ele-
ments represented mainly by the so-called ‘“‘Workers |
Communist’”’ Party. The resolution was carried by a
large majority.

The near-absence of serious debate on either the con-
stitutional crisis or the questions of peace and détente
revealed important weaknesses in the convention
resolutions. Delegates endorsed an executive resolution
which tails the NDP’s opportunist position on the
constitution. It called for provincial control of resources,
arole for the provinces in the communications industry,
a federal government responsive to western needs, the
right to organize and to withdraw labor, and opposition
to Prime Minister Trudeau’s amending formula.

As in the past, the executive and the convention com-
pletely ignored the recognition of Canada as a two-nation
state and Quebec’s right to self-determination.

In other resolutions the convention called for com-
plete nationalization of the whole potash industry and
improvements in Saskatchewan’s Workers Compensa-
tion Act.

While there was some division at the convention on
the question of political affiliation, the resolutions which _
were adopted reflected the growing militancy among
organized labor in defence of its rights.

The presence of the “‘Open Rank and File Caucus”’ at
the convention represented a stage in the development of
the trade union movement here. The ‘“‘Workers Com-
munist’’ Party, which tried to use this caucus for their
own ends, clearly exposed themselves as manipulators
and splitters.

Nadine Hunt, won re-election to her third term as SFL
resident.

U.S. women protest outside the nation’s capital buildin
Pay and an end to sex descrimination. On average
Concentrated into the clerical and service sectors. Under Reagan

g on thé eve of the presidential elections, demanding equal

U.S. women earn about 59% of
their outlook Is particularly bleak.

a man’s wage and are

C

y,

As the crisis of state monopoly
Capitalism deepens, corporations
and their governments will turn
More and more towards. tri-

Partism and corporatism as a Way:

Of deflecting militant effective op-
Position by the trade-union
Movement. °

Tripartism is a method of in-
Volving the unions, together with
Corporations and governments, in
Evolving joint programs and joint
Solutions for the manifest prob-

ms confronting the system.
Tporatism goes beyond this to
sform the trade union move-
Ment, through legislation and so-
Cial contract policies, into a part
Of the process. of capitalist
ement. ;

In a period when the trade
Union leadership in a country is
Not class or socialist conscious,

dangers of tri-partism and
Corporatism, particularly when
the system is in trouble, are par-
Ucularly acute. It requires a care-
and systematic effort by the
left and more advanced elements

- Of the trade union and labor

Movement to help the trade

unions avoid being trapped into
these extremely dangerous
snares.

It does not help too much in this
process when the question of tri-
partism is confused with legiti-
mate relations. between trade
union bodies, corporations and or
governments, which are an.ever
necessary and present part of the
responsibilities of trade union

- leadership.

The forays of the Canadian
Labor Congress leadership into
Tripartism following the October
General Strike in 1978, and the
two tier and three-tier sectoral
committees set up during” that
period were classical tripartisism
and it is to the credit of the .

ian trade union movement as a
eis that the leaders of the CLC
were forced to acknowledge their
mistake and pass a resolution at
the last CLC convention which
pointed labor in a different direc-
tion.

That resolution read:

“Whereas the role of the labor
movement is to advance the
interests of working people and

: Tripartism for labor:

the underpriveledged in our socie-
ty; and

Whereas corporate manage-
ments and their political allies
favor investor interests and only
grudgingly tolerate trade unions
for political expediency; and

Whereas under a private enter-
prise economic system the prop-
erty owner is considered as the
master and the worker as the
servant; and

Whereas the labor movement
must take an active part in the
legislative and political arenas to
protect its gains made in the col-
lective bargaining fields; and

Whereas the labor movement
must continue to challenge our

economic and political systems
that perpetuate injustices;

Therefore Be It Resolved that
the Canadian Labor Congress and
its affiliates participate in public
forums and in discussions at vari-
ous government and_ industry
levels on a coordinated basis only
when it will benefit the workers;

Be it further resolved that such
activities be at all times consistent
with the policies and programs of
the Canadian Labor Congress and
be accountable to the labor
movement.”’

This resolution was a com-
posite to cover 16 resolutions be-
fore the delegates critical of the
CLC’s involvement in tripartism.

The resolution sets the matter
in its proper perspective and
clearly points the leadership in
opposition to tripartism.

The key areas of the resolution
are (1) to note that labor has inter-
ests which are both different and
inimical to those of management
and its governments (2) To re-
strict the trade unions discussions
with management to pursuing the
CLC’s defined programs.

No! Yes? Maybe?

If the unions live up this resolu-
tion they will avoid the pitfalls of
tripartism.

In life however the struggle will
continue precisely because of the
weak class consciousness of the
Canadian trade union movement
as a whole and its leadership as
well.

As the pressures of the system
deepen and collective bargaining
finds itself unable to meet the
problems of the membership,
great pressure will be exerted on
trade union leaders to sit down
with management and govern-
ment to work out ‘‘joint solu-
tions’’ to these problems. Unless
the full import of tripartism and
corporatism are understood by a
much larger body of the trade
union movement sections of the
trade union movement, and in-
deed the trade union movement
as a whole may well be drawn into
both areas.

In fact the CLC is now deeply
involved in a tripartism deal in the

-area of manpower planning with

the Business Council on national
issues which I will come back to
next week.

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—NOV. 14, 1980—Page 5