Jobless highest since
thirties warn experts

By TRADE UNION RESEARCH BUREAU
The present unemployment situation is the most serious since the days of the

dirty thirties.

It has been revealed by the government that the official unemployment total is
over, 550,000, if the-Dominion Bureau of Statistics figure is used, and over 814,000
if the Unemployment Insurance figures are used.

_ Both of the above figures
leave out many unemployed
people. The D.B.S. figure is
based on a sample survey of
30,000 households, and there-
fore minimizes the number of
unemployed, because it misses
the transient population among
whom unemployment is pre-
sumably highest. The Unem-
ployment Insurance figure is
low, because it leaves out those
whose U.LC. eligibility has ex-
pired, those occupations not
covered by unemployment in-
surance and those who have
recently left school and never
held. a job.

In calculating the precent-
age of unemployment, the
government as a rule divides
the number of unemployed,
-using one or other of the above
figures, by the total labor
force, including bosses, farm-
ers and various other types of
people who are not subject to
unemployment, but who may
suffer from hard times in other
ways.

A more accurate way of com-
puting it is to divide the num-
ber of unemployed registered
with the Unemployment Insur-
ance Commission by the total

number insured. This will still
be too low a figure for the
reasons already mentioned, but
it will be much closer to the
truth. It will also provide a
more reasonable basis for com-
parison with figures for the
thirties, when the number of
unemployed trade unionists
was expressed as a percentage
of the total trade union mem-
bership.

If the percentages of unem-
ployment for the post war
years are calculated on that
basis, we obtain the follow-
ing series of. figures:

1948 2.8 | 1954 8.3
1949 4.1 | 1955 7.2
1950 5.0 | 1956 5.9
1951 4.3 | 1957. 7.7
1952 5.3 | 1958 10.7
1953 6.0 | 1959 8.7

The above figures are aver-
ages for the respective years.
Scanning the column, the most
obvious feature of the series
is the tendency for the percen-
tage of unemployed to rise
from year to year. It is true, of
course, that in “recovery”
years, the percentage drops be-
low that of the preceding crisis
year. However, the recovery is

FIRST

win an award.

Room 6, 426 Main St.

PT Writing Contest

‘WHAT DISARMAMENT WOULD
MEAN WHERE I LIVE’

$250

RULES

@ Entries should be not less than 100 words and not more
than 500. Write about the changes that disarmament could
bring to your locality—-what public projects could be
undertaken if money now spent on the arms race was
devoted to people’s needs. There is no eniry fee, and
any number of eniries may be submitted.

@ Contest closes May 15, 1960. All entries will be judged
by the editorial board of the Pacific Tribune, whose de-
cision will be final, and must be submitted with the under-
standing, that they may be pHbrnned whether or not Said

Address all entries to
Pacific Tribune Writing Contest

Vancouver 4, B.C.

never complete. This is strik-
ingly illustrated by the fact
that the percentage of unem-
ployed in the “boom” year,
1956 is higher than. in the
crisis year 1959. Also, the per-
centage unemployed is higher
in the “recovery” year 1959
than in the crisis year 1954.
We seem therefore to have
reached a stage of apparently
permanent unemployment such
as we have not seen since be-
fore the war. With an average| |

of nearly nine percent’ unem-|;
ployed in a prosperous year, | |
what does the next crisis hold| |

in’ store?

A further feature of the un-
employment < situation is the
high seasonal peak. For Febru-
ary, which is the highest

month, the following are the

peaks of recent years:

1955 14 | 1956 Tit
1957 11.6 | 1958 17.0
1959 15.3. | 1960 15

When we recall that the all
time peak of officially record-
ed unemployment was 25 per-
cent in February 1933, the
above figures are reaching dan-
gerous proportions.

Labor can no longer afford
to be complacent about this
situation. Millions of workers
in this country are at the pre-
sent time committed to mort-
gage payments which account
for a very large percentage of
their unemployment insurance
benefits, and in most cases pay-
ments on consumer loans or in-
stalment plans as well. Any

lengthy period of unemploy-

ment is bound to lead to evic-
tions and foreclosures,

SYLC convention
meets May 21

Youth organizations orn the
Soviet Union,

China, Italy,
Franch, and Cuba have accep-
ted invitations to send repres-
entatives to the second national
convention of -the Socialist

| Youth League of Canada, to be

held in Toronto, May 21-28.

Delegates representing every
club .of the organization in
Canada will discuss all aspects
of the policy and activities of
the SYLC, and map out future
plans.

“We have perched: a stage of apparently périttnent unem-
ployment such as we have not seen since before the war,’

says this article: And the question is asked:

: “With an

average of nearly nine percent unemployed in a prosperous
year, what does the next crisis hold in store?”

Ukraine bard honored

at large gathering

LABOR
BRIEFS,

The Labor Relations
Board has been ordered to
rehear the CBRT applica-
tion for certification of
Black Ball Ferries by Mr.
Justice Harry Sullivan, last
Friday in Supreme Court
chambers.

By this action a previous de-
cision of the Board favoring
the SIU was set aside. In re-
jecting the Board’s decision
Mr, Justice’ Harry Sullivan

‘said that in his view he didn’t

think the board had the pow:
er to reject. the CBRT bid on
the sole ground that not all of
the 90 members claimed were
members in good standing,
Sime samen,

Vancouver Civic Employees
Union, Outside Workers, will
vote at a membership meeting
Friday, April 8 at 8 p.m: in
Pender Auditorium on wheth-
er to accept or reject a Con-

ciliation Board recommenda-
tion.

across the board wage increase
of seven’ cents an hour plus

iority provisions.
ke oe oe

At its March 9 meeting,

Nearly 100 years after
the death of the great

| Ukrainian poet Taras Shev-

chenko, his memory is still
honored and revered among
Ukrainians and people of
all nationalities. This was
demonstrated at the annual

Shevchenko concert held in~

Vancouver, Sunday, April 3,
in Queen Elizabeth Theatre,
which was attended by 2600
people.

Two hundred performers
paid tribute to Shevchenko in
dance and song. The finale,
which included Ed McCurdy’s
Strangest Dream, reflected the
hope for peace among men.

A special resolution was un-
animously adopted by the large

The Board recommended an

changes in vacations and sen-

gathering which requested the
Diefenbaker government to
make the voice of Canada
heard in bringing an end to
the killing of Negroes in
South Africa.

Local 1005 of United. Steel
Workers of America, the un-
ion’s largest local in Canada,
which covers the workers in
Stelco, Hamilton, endorsed the
unanimous recommendation of

their executive that Mine Mill :

be allowed to state their case
at the forthcoming Canadian
Labor Congress convention.
‘This recommendation was
made on the basis of a letter
which Mine: Mill had sent: to
all union locals feesnetote the

country.

PUBLIC MEETING

NO GERMAN BASES.
IN SPAIN! |
SPEAKER: TOM McEWEN
- Pender. Auditorium
Sun., April 10 — 8: p.m.

April 8, 1960—PACIFIC TRIBUNE—Page 2

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