2 THE WESTERN CANADIAN LUMBER WORKER

LOCAL 1-288 IWA (Lumber Inspectors) officers at the head table. Group left, Ron Grant,
Financial Secretary; Lorne Price, 2nd Vice-President; Roy Zoost, President; Jack Col-

bourne, Ist Vice-President.

REGIONAL 2nd VICE-PRESIDENT Bob Blanchard was
guest speaker.

DECEMBER 1976 — JANUARY 1977 |

| RATIFIED AT MEETING

y

ROY ZOOST NEW PRESIDENT _
OF LUMBER INSPECTORS’ LOCAL

Annual Meeting of Local 1-
288 (Lumber Inspectors) held
December 4, at the Malaspina
Hotel in Nanaimo, ratified the
elevation of Roy Zoost from
Local 1st Vice-President to
Presidemt.

The move was made neces-
sary by the untimely death of
the former President Bob Hall-
berg who passed away last
September 28.

Other officers of the Local
are J. H. Colbourne, 1st Vice-
President; L.E. Price, 2nd
Vice-President; R. C. Grant,
Financial Secretary; E. E.
Smith, Recording Secretary;
T. Grouhel, Warden.

Approximately forty mem-
bers attended the meeting and
dealt with 18 resolutions, a
number of reports and heard
from guest speaker Bob Blan-
chard, Regional 2nd Vice-Pre-
sident.

Blanchard praised the job
the inspectors were doing in
fighting to protect the high
standards of grading lumber
for export markets. He stated
that the P.L.I.B. stamp of ap-

proval was recognized world-
wide on B.C. lumber and every
precaution should be taken to
protect the stamp’s integrity.

At the request of the
meeting, Blanchard gave a
concise report on what had oc-
curred at the B.C. Federation
of Labour convention and the
reasons why the IWA opposed
the re-election of Len Guy.

He explained the history of
the last set of negotiations for
the IWA on the coast and the
interference of the Federation
officers into the internal busi-
ness of the Union.

He bluntly stated that the
Federation officers appeared
determined to see all the IWA
coast members on strike
“come hell or high water.’’ It
appeared he suggested, that
the sole purpose for their ac-
tion was to embarrass the NDP
government and if it meant
thirty thousand IWA members
suffering economic hardship to
accomplish this, so what.

He stated that for these
reasons the IWA was con-

TERRY GROUHEL, Warden,

visitors.

vinced that Len Guy was not
the person to head up the B.C.
Federation of Labour.

The comprehensive Officers’
Report covered the activities
of the Local during the past
year. It paid tribute to Bob
Hallberg for his many years of
dedication to the Local and ex-
tended deepest sympathy to
the family.

A good deal of the Report
hammered the Workers’ Com-
pensation Board for the in-
humane treatment it was ac-
cording workers with legiti-
mate claims. .

The report cited a number of
cases where members have
had their claims approved and
then have them overturned by
the Board Commissioners. So
prevelant has this policy
become that the Local Union
was forced to protest the
matter at the last IWA
Regional convention which in

turn submitted a resolution +._

the B.C. Federation of Labour
convention, demanding gov-
ernment action to correct the
problem. ~-

signed in the delegates and

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