Toronto Labor Council blasts TTC appointments

Charge political patronage

TORONTO — At their meet-
ing last week, delegates to the
Labor Council of Metropolitan
Toronto blasted the Metro To-
ronto municipal council for its
most recent example of political
patronage in the appointment of
“political cronies” to important
public commissions.

A unanimously endorsed state-
ment of the Labor Council’s
executive board noted: “Metro
Council on Tuesday, January 14
appointed political has-beens,
Karl Mallette and David Roten-
berg, to the Toronto Transit
Commission as citizen represen-
tatives, both having been cast
aside by the electorate. One
wonders what citizens they pur-
port to represent.”

“In appointing them, Metro
Council rejected the principle of
having labor’s voice on the TTC,
an act that this Council must
vigorously protest.

“At the same time, they also
by-passed one of the most
knowledgeable transit experts in
Metro, Richard Soberman, chair-
man of the Metropolitan To-
ronto Transportation Plan Re-
view.

“And to put icing on the cake,

Union wages
48% higher

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The
U.S. Department of Labor re-
cently issued a study showing
that being a member of a union
can mean as much as 48% more
in wages.

The study in the department’s
monthly review are based on a
comparison of usual earnings for
union and non-union workers in
May, 1973.

In its breakdown of the fig-
ures the report ‘noted that the
average higher earnings amount-
ed to 12% for unionized work-
ers, but also that in some
industries the percentage was
considerably higher. Unionized
craft employees make about
29% more than their non-union
counterparts, laborers 36% more,
service workers 17% more and
operators of transportation equ-
ipment 43% more.

Controller E. H. Farrow, who in
the past, has displayed a total
ignorance of transit matters,
was re-appointed over Alderman
Colin Vaughan, who would have
not only brought his excellent
knowledge of urban transporta-
tion to the TTC, but would have
given the City of Toronto a
voice on this important Commis-
sion.

“By these decisions, Metro
Council has. repudiated the
wishes of its constituents at its
inaugural meeting — what lies
ahead?”

Foreign Trade

Another executive board state-
ment also received an over-
whelming vote of approval. The
vote on the foreign trade state-
ment which called on the Cana-
dian government to take imme-
diate action to prevent interfer-
ence by U.S. laws on Canadian
trade with Cuba, would have
been unanimous, had it not been
for the vote of one diehard,
right-wing fanatic.

The statement read in part:

“The Labor Council views
with extreme concern the recent
episode where an American com-
pany has pressured its wholly-
owned subsidiary from not fil-
ling a $500,000-orders of office
equipment to another country,
specifically Cuba.

“This, once again, brings to
the fore this whole question of
corporate control, and under
what laws companies operate.

“It should be clearly spelled
out by the Canadian Govern-
ment that companies operating,
or based in Canada, have to
comply with the laws of Canada,
be they Canadian companies or
subsidiaries of foreign com-
panies; and that these companies
should have the right to trade
freely with any other country.

“And assurances should be
guaranteed that companies
should not be pressured or co-
erced into adhering to foreign
trade policies of other govern-
ments, or the laws of other gov-
ernments.”

Annual Election

The meeting was also marked
by the annual election of offic-
ers and members of the various
committees in which several

progressives were elected to
posts. :

Evelyn Armstrong, of the Unit-

ed Electrical Workers, the only
woman to be elected to the new
executive board received 205
votes and had the second highest
vote for the 10-person board. In
the elections for the important
Municipal and Community Ac-
tion Committee, Jim Buller of
the Typographical Union shat-
tered the “establishment” slate
and was elected despite some of-
ficial opposition to his candid-
acy. Also elected to the commit-
tee were Alan Guettel of the
Newspaper Guild and Neil
Young of the United Electrical
Workers.

According to press reports the
Trudeau Government is engaged
in talks with industry and labor
in an effort to find what is re-
ferred to as mutually acceptable
methods for dealing with capi-
talist economic problems, includ-
ing inflation. One of the aims is
to “reduce labor-management
tension,” which is plainer lan-
guage means to mitigate the ir-
reconcilable conflict between la-
bor and capital For this purpose
a tripartite committee to deal
with labor-management relations
is to be created.

How is it envisaged that the
conflict between a worker and
his boss is going to be mitigated
in a society where the bosses
run the whole show and private
monopoly profits are the motive
force that determines the be or
not to be of all social economic
activity? Even more important,
at who’s expense — wages or
profit? And who is responsible
for the economic crisis; layofis,

mass unemployment, high prices _

and inflation, in the first place?
The trade unions do not deter-
mine pricing policy of commo-
dity markets of the capitalist
world. The corporate elite and
their governments do.
CLC Aware of Facts

The Canadian Labor Congress
seems to be aware of this fact.
The economic policy statement
issued by the CLC executive
council made it clear that the
CLC regards high profits, hous-
ing costs and food prices, not
wages, as the villains behind in-
flation. “The only people who
have to bargain collectively in
the public area are the unions.

Everyone else can set whatever

the traffic will bear and do so in
this country.”

The CLC statement charged
growing polarization between
rich and poor, that organized
labor had barely held its own,
and that it had failed to in-

- crease labor’s share of the na-

tional income. At the same time
it said third quarter profits in
1974 were 33% higher than in
the previous year and 174%
higher than in the fourth quar-
ter of 1970. Obviously some-
thing is wrong with this kind
of a system. And the CLC has
made clear that within the pre-
sent economic framework, Can-
ada’s Minister of Finance, Mr.
Turner, can expect no restraint
by labor in its wage demands.
All well and good.

In view of all this, why is the
CLC offering to join with em-

‘e than never

In a taped interview with Dick
Cavett, George Meany, president
of the AFL-CIO became eligible
for a “Better late than, never”
award. :

Cavett: Mr. Meany, you were
a strong supporter of LBJ and
Richard Nixon in supporting
them on the Vietnam war.

Meany: Yup.

Cavett: Do you still feel you
were right?

Meany: Nope. If I’da known
then what I know now I don’t
think we would have backed
them. But we backed them on
information that was given to us

by President of the Uni
States. You know the Presid
of the U.S. has a lot of sour
of information that a lot of
don’t have—the joint Chiefs
Staff and the intelligence peo
We felt this was the man
had to back and we did bi
Nixon. Do.I think I was rig!
I thought I was right at the tim
But I would say to you, 1}
knew then what I know no
wouldn’t have backed them.

Cavett: Is it hard for you?
admit that?

Meany: No, if you’re wrod
you’re wrong.”

LABOR SCENE [NB surrender—fight

BY BRUCE MAGNUSON

ployees and governments in
what amounts to back-room
deals to find “fair” economic
solutions? What do the CLC

Executive Council and Mr. Mor-.

ris regard as a “fair” and “equi-
table” distributtion of national
income?
Product of State Monopoly
Is it not high time to climb
down from the lofty heights of

_the generalizations and get down

to specifics? This is particularly
important, since the CLC has ab-
solutely no mandate from its af-
filiated membership to accept
any share whatever of the res-
ponsibility for the present econo-
mic crisis, which is entirely a
product of state-monopoly capi-
talism.

There is no evidence that the
ruling class of this or any other
capitalist country stands pre-
pared to make any sacrifices for
the good of society as a whole.
Quite the contrary, if we look
carefully at the big U.S. oil
companies holding everybody to
ransom. 4

What happens in the auto in-
dustry when the prices are so
high that cars cannot be sold?
Do the prices come down? Not
on your life. The multi-billion
dollar corporations stop pro-
duction to clear their invent-
ories. For them there are no
problems, they can live on their
capital already taken from. the
wealth produced for them by
their workers. But not so with
the worker who is thrown out
of his job and income. What
will happen to the workers when
supplementary and regular un-
employment credits are exhaust-
ed? Starvation and disaster stare
them in the face. Not even fringe
benefits, including ‘“Thirty-and-
Out” pensions will be of much
use once the production comes
to a halt. So who is it that needs

guidelines, and who needs re-

straining — the robber or the
victim?
- Shameful Surrender

Joe Morris ought to ask him-
self this question next time he
is to make a speech that talks
and admonishes organized work-
about selfish interest groups,
ers not to become “‘a selfish in-
terest group”. Today not even
the best organized and most
powerful of our trade unions,
like the auto workers who sup-
posedly have the organized pow-
er to defend their own, seem to
be able to resist, much less pre-
vent, being thrown out of their

jobs, except at their own
pense.

When Local 195 UAW, Win!
sor, scuttles its contract pro}
sions on seniority and accep
three weeks work per monl
who is sacrificing what?
for whom? This is what the
ronto Globe and Mail editoria
es on as an example for all laD
to follow. A complete, abje
and shameful surrender by
powerful union to the power
a capitalist corporation.

This is a complete bankrupt
and capitulation of union lead
ship, when what is needed is
organized fight-back to stop. 1
offs, raise wages, cut pri
check the drift to depressi
and fight for a policy of full
ployment without inflation | ;
curbing the power of the mom
polies and the corporate elite

Masters of Our Destiny
There is no reason for int

tion and unemployment in
ada. In the socialist count

there is no unemployment ¢

inflation and the workers’ li
standards are rising year
year. The evils exist in the lat
of capitalism where the mull
national corporations and cab,
talist monopolies are in cont
and where planlessness and #
archy of production pre
What we really need, and né
badly, is a fundamental reorg@
zation of our society to mé
the working people of this col |
try the masters of their OM)
destiny. This is something is
trade union leadership needs
start thinking about now. |
In the meantime, much cat ©
done today to protect Canadia)
from the evil effects of int) |
tion and the threat of depress?
in Canada. 2.
What is needed is a prog
such as the 1l-point prog
published by the Commu
Party of Canada on Decem'
24 of last year, 1974. Much
this has already been adopted
policy by the CLC. But it ne%
to be actively fought for i) °
mass action campaign to ¥
the Canadian people for such)
meaningful and construct)
anti-inflation program.

4
CLC aims are not going to!’
realized in behind-closed-d% :
conferences with governmt
and employers, on the basis | '
some mythical common inte
That is the way to court defé
for labor and disaster for

ada.