THE WESTERN CANADIAN

LUMBER

WORKER

AUTHORIZED AS SECOND CLASS MAIL, POST OFFICE DEPARTMENT, OTTAWA, AND FOR PAYMENT OF POSTAGE IN CASH.

Vol. XXXVI, No. 15

VANCOUVER, B.C.

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BROADWAY cfs PRINTERS LTO.

ist Issue
August, 1968

ON ALL CHARGES

23, eae

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PRESIDENT MOORE

CRITICS ANSWERED

IWA members and the general public were told in a press release, Au-
gust 16, that eighteen officers and full-time staff members from three Local
Unions had decided to organize membership support for their own leader-
ship in the Western Canadian Regional Council.

Three Local Union Presidents in attendance secured the backing of the
caucus for top Regional offices well in advance of the usual Regional Con-

vention nominations.

: This unusual advance publicity, it is said, was arranged to gain extra
time for machined campaigning before, during and after the Regional Con-
vention in order to capture membership votes to elect a Syd Thompson slate.

It is predicted that as a re-
sult of the tactics planned,
violently partisan debates will
occur on every issue to be
considered by the Regional
Convention, September 9th to
13th. The danger is seen that
convention debates and deci-
sions will be colored by per-
sonal political campaigning
likely to fog the issues.

The Syd Thompson caucus
statement declared that, at the
Regional level, the Union has
been without “guidance and
leadership from the top.” This
was the only clue offered to
indicate the nature of the pro-
posed “new program and poli-
cies intended to capture the
imagination of IWA mem-
bers.” It is evidently pre-
sumed that IWA members

SCHUMAKER WINS COURT CASE

An action for damages
brought by Oliver Sawmills
Ltd. (a subsidiary of Noranda
Mining) against Local 1-423
President Bill Schumaker was
dismissed in the Supreme
Court of British Columbia.

The suit was launched
against Schumaker after the
mill crew (members of his
Local Union) refused to cross
a picket line set up by the
IBEW at the mill’s gate last
year, At that time the IBEW
was striking the West Koot-
enay Power & Light Com-
pany and the picket line was
set up because the mill was
getting power from the struck
company.

The Oliver company charg-
ed in its damage action that
although the plant chairman
Yosh Aura, was instrumental
in stopping the crew crossing
the picket line, he had done so
on orders of Schumaker.

It requested specific dam-
ages of $647.98 for the one day
production loss suffered by
the crew’s refusal to work.

The Hon. Mr. Justice Greg-
Vancouver last June 18-19,
stated in his judgmel

that

edge of the picket line and

therefore was in no position to

instruct anyone to take action.
He further stated in part:
“Tt is clear that neither the

BILL SCHUMAKER

defendant president nor any
other officer of the defendant
union had any knowledge be-
fore Mr. Aura’s_ telephone
call to the defendant Schu-
maker in Kelowna at about
9:30 that the crew had re-

fused to cross the picket line
— or indeed even that the

plaintiff's plant was being
picketed. It is argued, how-
ever, that a cause of action is
made out against the defend-
ants on the basis that the pre-
vious month the defendant
Schumaker had counselled
all members of the defendant
union to honour IBEW picket
lines and that on the day in
question Mr, Aura, with at
least enough authority to at-
tract liability to the defendant
union of which he was a
member, counselled the em-
ployees in question not to
cross the picket line and go
to work. I will deal first with
the defendant Schumaker and
then with the defendant uni-
on. :
Among Mr. Schumaker’s
‘duties as president of the
defendant union was that of
editing and producing the
union’s monthly publication
— “Bits of Bark — from here
and there.” In the April issue
he had published the follow-
ing:
“LOCAL UNION OFFICE,
STRIKE HEADQUARTERS”
The members of the IBEW
Union, on strike against the
City of Kelowna have estab-
lished their central strike

See “COURT CASE”—P. 5

will sign a blank cheque to
buy policies not yet disclosed.

As the well-publicized
statement consists only of ac-
cusations against Regional
President Jack Moore and his
fellow-officers, the Western
Canadian Lumber Worker
questioned Jack Moore on the
points raised so that IWA
members may be more fully
informed on both sides of the
conflict now being aired pub-
licly.

Question: To what extent
are you concerned about this
public attack on Regional
“leadership?”

Moore: “I am not concerned
about personal criticism. di-
rected at me, nor are my fel-
low-officers. That is to be
expected. I am solely con-

cerned about the effect on the
future progress of the Union
if it accepts the attempted
domination by one group.
“As a matter of fact, I pre-

viously suggested that if Syd.

Thompson has reason to at-
tack Regional administration,
he should accept nomination
and put his views to the test
of membership opinion. I and
my fellow-officers under at-
tack. ask that we -be judged
fairly by the members in the
light of all the facts about
accomplishments and deci-
sions on the record during our
term of office. Apparently, this
self-appointed junta intends
that we should be condemned
without a hearing.

See “MOORE”—Page 4

«In Memoriam

A staunch trade unionist
and hard working member of
the NDP, Gordon Paterson,
3rd Vice-President of Local
1-217 Vancouver, passed away
in hospital August 13.

Gordon who was 42 years
of age first started work in
the industry as a boy of 15.
Even at this early age he
showed his strong interest in
unionism and was fired from
numerous jobs in the False
Creek mills for his organiza-
tional attempts on behalf of
the IWA.

For the past number of
years Gordon worked at Van-
couver Plywood where he
quickly became its very popu-
Jar plant chairman.

During this period he took
an active interest in politics
and actively supported the
New Democratic Party. He
was campaign chairman for
the NDP candidates in Little
Mountain in the last Provin-
cial election and worked hard
for the NDP candidates in the
recent federal election.

Gordon is survived by his
wife Marg. and one son.

The officers and staff of the
Regional Office extend to

them sincere sympathy for
their untimely loss.

ails

GORDON PATERSON

ES” CO Se ere