LABOR SCEN

BY BRUCE MAGNUSON

The Farmers’ Union of Que-
bec (L’Union des Producteurs
Agricoles) has most effectively
exploded the falsehood that*
farmers stand to gain from‘
higher food prices.

The Quebec farm organiza-
tion has appeared before the
Special House Committee now
investigating food prices. It has
exposed the fact that the farm-
er collects three cents per
pound for broiler turkeys which
retail at 60 cents ner nound, In
other words, the farmer received
five cents of the consumer’s
turkey dollar. This is based on
a careful survey conducted last
July by the farm organization.

In the case of broiler chickens,
firms providing supplies to the
farmers take 42.5 cents of the
consumer dollar, processors and
retailers get 46 cents, and the
farmer gets 11.5 cents. Out of
the farmer’s 11.5 cents he has
to pay his own salary, wages
for hired help and interest on
capital invested.

The farmers’ brief pointed out
that somewhere between 30 and
35% of a live turkey’s weight
is lost in preparation for the
supermarket. But the spread be-
tween five cents of the consumer
dollar going to the farmer and
the 95 cents going to the mid-
dlemen (the monopolies) is big
enough to more than cover this
loss several times over.

Even if the farmer tries to in-
crease his income by a fraction
of what he now gets, the pro-
cessing industries take advan-
tage of the psychological effect
created by the increase and raise
the consumer price by a much
higher differential.

x ere eS

Now if the farmers are not
getting any benefit from high
food prices, what about. labor?
The big retail chains and food
processing monopolies are al-
ways seeking to justify price in-
creases on the basis of higher
labor costs. They blame infla-
tion on. higher wages, and
scream that wages and prices
bsth have to be-controlled. But
where this has been tried, as in
the USA, the result has been
that wages have indeed been
under strict control because
every employer makes sure that
this is done, but prices have
centinued to rise beyond any
control.

“Monopoly —enemy No.1
of workers and farmers

There are many reasons for
inflation and rising prices, which
is a result of the buying power
of money depreciating. This has
been caused by arms spending,
such as that related to the Viet-
nam war.

That war has put the U-S.
government into debt so badly
that it now asks other countries
to pay its bills, while 80 billion
U.S. dollars are floating around
Europe and Japan and are used.
by speculating corporations and
international: money bags to
make huge profits, while the
whole international monetary
system is being undermined. Ex-
cess paper currency is rolling
off the printing presses.

All of these reasons can be
given for inflationary pressure
which in the final analysis can
be traced back to monopoly con-
trol and monopoly profiteering
at the expense of the people.

After careful study of these
reasons for inflation, one thing
becomes clear beyond doubt —
while wages figure as a part of
the cost of production, the la-
borer produces a surplus value
over and above what he is paid
in wages which is appropriated
by the employer, or employers
in the form of profit. When an
employer can no longer make a
profit out of his hired labor, the
worker is simply laid off. The
simple fact, therefore, is that
wages are constantly reproduced
by the worker, plus a profit ac-
cruing to the employer. Con-
sequently wages are not and
never can become inflationary.

% % %

It is too bad that the Cana-
dian Labor Congress failed to
make its stand in opposition to
wage controls when it appeared
before the prices committee. The
CLC had a wonderful opportun-
ity to go on the offensive on the
matter of wages as a factor in
determining high food prices.

The farmers have made a good
case by taking a firm stand in
opposition to allowing monopo-
listic corporations alone to deter-
mine food prices. They have ask-
ed for specific government ac-
tion to curb such monopoly con-
trol, including the wasteful prac-
tice of advertising at the ex-
pense of the consumers.

Both workers and farmers,
who are at the same time the
great bulk of food consumers,

are today at the mercy of mon-

opoly control. Farmers are en- .

titled to parity income with or-
ganized workers in industry and
are organizing to get it.

Both workers and farmers
have one enemy to fight to
achieve such parity, and that
enemy is the profiteering cor-
porations, the international as
well as domestic monopolies.

The idea of measuring earn-
ings in terms cf sales is dis-
honest and misleading. Food
chains ought to be forced by
law to relate their profits to
equity investments.

Similarly there need, be some
controls on advertising. In 1968
a parliamentary committee
showed grocery advertising as
costing the average family of
four $14.80 per year. It has most
certainly increased tremendous-
ly in recent times.

It is to be hoped that the
Canadian Labor Congress, on be-
half of organized labor in Can-
ada, will make its position clear
to the House of Commons Com-
mittee on food prices as to
where it stands on the issue of
wages and prices.

It is also to be hoped that
the CLC will carry out the de-
cision made by the 9th biennial
convention held in Ottawa last
Mey That decision called for a
country-wide campaign by the
CLC to explain the oe ae
of inflation.

It is indeed unfortunate that
the NDP-MP’s decided to remain
neutral on this crucial issue, as
they appeared to be doing when
the CLC appeared before the
House committee. Indeed they
appeared to be playing a bit of
cheap politics at the expense of
labor. Yet, it is their duty, as it
is the duty of all anti-monopoly
forces in this country, to expose
the lie that wages are respon-
sible for inflation. That it is the
monopolies, and not labor, that
are out to rob the people.

Every member, every local
union, every labor council, and
all who represent or speak for
organized labor, ought to raise
their voices loud in protest and
force the government to act now,
to curb monopoly profiteering in
food. It is not the only place
where profiteering is going on.
It goes on everywhere. But this
is a good place to start. It may
open the door to wider action

along the line of corporate rip-
offs.

Canada should remain on ICCS

‘EDMONTON — A telegram
urging continued Canadian par-
ticipation in the International
Commission of Control and Su-
pervision by maintaining peace-
keeping forces in Vietnam was
to be sent to External Affairs
Minister Sharp after a decision
to that effect was taken at the
monthly meet of the Edmonton
and District Labour Council.

The Quebec Three once again
received Council support as a
resolution was adopted to con-
demn the jailing on labor
charges of Louis Laberge, Yvon
Charbonneau and Marcel Pepin.

For lack of volunteers, the
Council was compelled this

month to forget the setting up ~
of the proposed legislative af- ~

fairs committee and the politi-

cal action committee, although
the civic affairs committee found
a good number of willing par-
ticipants.

City of Edmonton negotiations
seem to have reached a bind
with management side appearing
to be lacking in willingness to
negotiate, it was disclosed dur-
ing reports from locals. Man-
agement’s tactic at this stage
seems to be choosing a pocket-
size negotiation room devoid of
ventilation.

“If you guys don’t like it you
can all go home”, was reported
to be the answer from the boss
as CUPE negotiators tried to
book a larger room.

Ed

“Scrapping tuition fees at uni-
versities would help the rich at

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—FRIDAY, MARCH 30, 1973—PAGE 6

the expense of the poor”, D. R.
McKellips, member of a Univer:
sity of Alberta Senate task force
told the Labor Council in answer

to a suggestion that abolishing .

tuition fees could be looked at
as a means to help students.
The professor had come to
solicit written and oral opinion
on the question of education
financing. As members of the
Senate task force directed to
assessing and collecting opinions
we have no opinion whatsoever,
we are not pushing any solu-
tion”, said D. R. McKellips.

But when questioned on the
idea of abolishing fees alto-

gether the “non-opinion” was:

“We doubt that would be of any
value.”

over 1971,

prices high.

® - e ° ee. g
High-stepping profit parade

A survey by Report on Business shows that after-tax pre

of Canadian corporations rose more than 24% in 1972. :

Anybody who put up a kitchen shelf or built a work ben

knows what lumber prices are like, and here’s the reason:
the forest group led the profit parade with a jump of 160%

AE your wages, or pension, or student loan, or mother’s ee
~~ lewance, or unemployment insurance or welfare went UP ©

160%) in 1972, you haven't much to kick about. ~

On the other hand, if you didn’t even reach the profit av
age of 24% you are entitled to stuff this report down
throat of the next person who tells you that wages Mm

About 500 people demonstrated before Queen's Pa ;
demand an end to strikebreaking and the use of injunctiom® —

legal strike.

Rally at Queen’s Part
supports Dare striker

By RICHARD ORLANDINI
TORONTO — About 500 de-
monstrators marched before
Queen’s Park last Wednesday,
demanding an end to strike

breaking, the use of injunctions

during a legal strike and a call
for companies to bargain in good
faith.
_ The demonstration ‘was or-
ganized by the United Brewery
Workers, Local 173, which has
been on strike against Dare
Foods Ltd. for the past 10
months. The demonstration was
endorsed by the Ontario Federa-
tion of Labor, and trade union-
ists representing locals through-
Out southern Ontario arrived by
bus to take part-in the march.
David Archer, president of the
Ontario Federation of Labor
spoke ‘to the marchers after the
demonstration, and said, “The
Dare strike must be won by
other trade unionists. It must be
won by boycotting Dare pro-
ducts, by making sure that our
retail unions do not allow Dare
products to go on the shelves
of the stores, and that every-
thing possible is done to dis-
Suade the general public from
buying Dare products. until such
time that Dare sits down and
ee a Paper settlement.

S no longer purely a fight
of _the Dare Sees for their
existence, it’s a fight of the'trade
union movement to see that
Pompantes like Dare aren’t al-
Sg their wishes on

Wayne Zettler, a member of
Logal 173, and a 10-month vet-
eran of the Dare strike, told the
demonstrators of the long and
hard Struggle waged not only
against the professional strike-
ee abut also against the

ana: indict ‘ :
Sipe diciary in Kitchen-

“People who work for Mr.
Dare, some for as many as 23
years, had goons set upon them
and later were charged. These
are people who had never been
charged with anything in their
life. They were charged while

“Zettler expressed myers?

[ §

labor movement and
rinciples. :
é “Some of our strike
pretty frustrated and
because things aren’t BY
way the labor book
ten. We can talk about *
ity, but right now there are
trade unionists work
plant. Its going to take
of all trade unionists
this sort of thing.”
Need Solidarity
Labor solidarity is 8°
needed to continue t “e,
and win the Dare sttl iid
much of that kind of a
should be’ provided pes,
leadership of the Ontal
ration of Labor.
The president and
officers of the OFL ar@
have to adopt some tude
than the “me too” attitl
Mr. Archer displayed
terview with the Cana
une at the demonstratid!
answering questions i
him about the compuh
tration in the elevale
he said that the “unio®
the compulsory arbitra
the OFL does not
the internal affairs 0
Then he turned %
demonstrators ane *
people (the Dare sti a
accept compulsory 7 se
they could get it. Itsaa
goddamn thing that
them back to work.
The suggestion °
compulsory arbitraule e
kind of leadershiP {0
strikers nor the Fes
ed labor in Ontario
their battles with sf
What is need ° atv"
and leadership of ee al
pressed by the deleB\ ai
OFL convention 1” ;
November, 1972. iP pre
At the demonstrat!

with the OFL !e
10 months on the P
sident Archer was
it and he must st

ic