LABOR Court backs victim against Consumers TORONTO — Score one point for John Persaud in his three year battle for civil rights at Consu- mers Distributing Ltd. In a unanimous decision, Feb. 9, a three-member panel of On- tario Supreme Court judges up- held the Ontario Human Rights Commission’s 1985 decision not to ratify an agreement Persaud signed with the company in Jan. 85, which forfeited his grievance rights over being unjustly fired in exchange for $50,000. The short-lived agreement came after a grueling day of talks between Persaud and the com- pany in which Persaud was bad- gered by lawyers from every direction into surrendering his ar- bitration rights in favor of a cash settlement. But the following day, having had a chance to reconsid- er, he changed his mind and launched the process of asking the Ontario Human Rights Com- mission not to ratify it. The Commission agreed with Persaud’s request clearing the way for the resumption of his ar- bitration case before the Ontario Labor Relations Board. How- ever, Consumers management thwarted this by seeking a judicial review of the OHRC decision not | to ratify. UFW rally to laun ou | ch boycott campaign TORONTO — Nearly 300 trade unionists rallied outside a downtown Dominion store, Feb. 7 to launch the United Farm Workers boycott of grapes and the A & P-Dominion chain. UFW leader Cesar Chavez, (above), flanked by auto union president Bob White and Steelworkers Ontario director Leo Gerard was on hand to release the union’s 14 minute film on devastation being wrought on farmworkers and consumers because of the growers’ indiscriminate use of deadly pesticides on the vines and grapes. The film is called the Wrath of Grapes and is available from local UFW offices. aN The supreme court’s Feb. 9 decision now clears the way for Persaud to complete the fight against his unjust dismissal in May 1984. At the same tithe it also will release a flood of OHRC complaints stemming from per- vasive racism at Consumers’ Mal- ton warehouse. Persaud told the Tribune last week that he was encouraged by the court’s decision. ‘‘My case is open ... if there’s any justice in the system the company should shut up and be made to pay up every dime I’ve had to spend de- fending myself’, he said. Persaud added that even crimi- nals have the right to a prelimi- nary enquiry before a decision is taken to go to trial, but no such right exists to protect victims be- fore the OHRC. Companies like Consumers are in effect given a forum in which to continue abus- ing their victims through costly legal shenanigans. The Conimission now has two weeks in which to decide whether to appoint a board of enquiry re- lating to Persaud’s human rights complaints. The hearings then must begin no later than 30 days following the convening of the board. If a board is named, Per- saud’s complaints could be heard by the middle of March. He expects those hearings to be lengthy because of the backlog of human rights complaints at Con- sumers. At the same time, Persaud’s case before the Ontario Labor Relations Board was to be heat Feb. 12 and 13. Persaud’s unjust dismissal if 1984, was rooted in his activities as militant chief steward in tht plant leading the workers’ fight 10 combat rampant racism in tht work place. Eventually, the workers su¢ ceeded in getting the human right to end rank exploitation of illeg# immigrants. Consumers’ practice up W then was to hire illegal immigrant for a day’s work, then have thei picked up by immigration offici als before they could collect the pay. : s Persaud, in fact had been take! from the plant in 1975 by immigt® tion officials, and interrogate! until he could prove his land of immigrant status. He’s now # Canadian citizen. training and promotion of visib# minority workers on their seniol ity and barring discriminatiol The workers complain of Const’ mers’ double standard in the wa) it treats white and visible minoril) workers. There have been incidents ? visible minority workers beiff beaten up and verbally harasse® by an openly racist worker wh? obviously enjoyed company sup port, since he was never di ciplined for his behavior. Ti worker in question was able arrogantly boast that he could gé any worker he wanted to, fired: Labor Briefs CUPW Cleaners win pact HALIFAX — Cleaners at the Halifax Metro postal plant have succeeded in winning their first collective agreement, local of- ficials of the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) recently announced. The CUPW negotiating committee, representing the 12-member bargaining unit, reached agreement with the employ- er, Federated Building Maintenance Ltd. of Toronto, and the tentative pact was overwhelmingly ratified by the membership. This marks the first time that postal cleaning staff have secured a first contract without resorting to strike action. Meanwhile, Halifax postal workers face other forms of har- assment from their main employer, Canada Post. CUPW local representative Gordie Ash has reported that management has allowed an RCMP narcotics agent into the main plant posing as a casual employee; that employees have been harassed by other drug agents in the plant’s parking lot; and that management plans to bring in drug sniffing dogs into the postal facility. Canada Post ‘‘has reached an all-time low where you would think we were working in the Kingston Peniten- tiary’’, Ash responded, adding that postal workers ‘‘deserve to be treated with dignity”’ in the workplace. Michelin braces for CAW’s return GRANTON, N.S. — Leaders of the anti-union forces at the three Michelin plants in Nova Scotia have announced in the wake of the narrowly-defeated CAW organizing drive here, that al- though they are opposed to unions, they are not opposed to organizing, per se. In fact, they have formed the ‘‘Michelin Employees Non-Union Group’”’ and plan to register as a non- profit organization in the province. After admitting that the group received financial donations from local business groups to help thwart the 1986 CAW drive, the anti-union forces plan to be better “‘prepared”’ for the next union drive. ‘‘We decided ... to get registered as a non-profit society so that donations made to us would be tax deductible”’ one spokesperson said, adding that the group will collect con- tributions from local businesses to create a ‘‘financial buffer’’ for another union opposition campaign. ... to the point 12 e PACIFIC TRIBUNE, FEBRUARY 18, 1987 NSGEU calls for an end to stalling Without a contract since Dec. ’85 By MIGUEL FIGUEROA HALIFAX — More than 500 provincial government workers : and supporters braved biting cold conditions as they marched through downtown Halifax Feb- ruary 7 to demand an end to gov- ernment sstalling and the achievement of a new contract. The frustrated workers, mem- bers of the Nova Scotia Govern- ment Employees Union (NSGEU), have been without a contract since December, 1985. Under existing provincial labor laws they are prohibited from tak- ing strike action in order to win a . new collective agreement. The provincial employees are angry that they are denied the same collective bargaining rights enjoyed by government workers in several other provinces, and they took that anger and frustra- tion to the very doorsteps of the ruling Progressive Conservative Party annual convention at the Halifax Sheraton. Booming chants of: ‘‘We want a contract!” and, ‘‘the Tories must go!’’; reverbated through the conven- tion hall for almost an hour as hundreds of trade unionists pa- raded below. Addressing the demonstration, NSGEU President Greg Blan- - chard condemned what he termed the ‘‘bad faith’ of the provincial government throughout the course of negotiations and called for the Tories’ resounding defeat in the next election, widely ex- pected to be held within the year. When negotiations between the government and NSGEU broke down last August, the union ap- plied for arbitration through the Civil Service Employees Rela- tions Board (CSERB). But it was clear from the outset that Premier John Buchanan’s government was not interested in arriving atan arbitrated settlement, choosing instead to drag out the process indefinitely to force the union into dropping some of its demands. Management Board chairman George Moody, under direction from Cabinet, then instituted a se- ries of manoeuvres designed to block the arbitration process. | mre ea FIRIBUNE Published weekly at 2681 East Hastings Street Vancouver, B.C. V5K 125. Phone 251-1186 “objections put forward by t en er ee ee pee ee ee Se Se Postal Code When the CSERB overruled t! government and ordered the bitration boards to convene hear the dispute, the governmé retaliated by taking (its o CSERB and the union to provi cial Supreme Court in what t NSGEU has termed ‘‘anot stalling ploy’’. President Blanchard told ti Tribune that the union h worked out an escalating progr: of action to pressure the gove ment for a ‘“‘fair and reasonab! contract”’, possibly to include province-wide mobilization for demonstration in Halifax to ¢ incide with the Feb. 26 opening” the new session of the Legisl# ture. lam enclosing 1 yr. $160 2yrs.$280) 6mo. $100 Introductory offer, 3 mo. $3(_ Foreign 1 yr. $250 Bill me later 0 } READ THE PAPER THAT FIGHTS FOR nem