Labor There are growing signs of another storm brewing on the Great Lakes. This should not be surprising in light _of SIU President Hall’s declaration of war against the Canadian trade union move- ment during the AFL - CIO Convention a threat he repeated again last week in New York. P What = ap- . a pears to. be in the offering is the picketing of all Canadian ships entering U.S. ports, not only those un- der CMU contract. This shift in tactics is obviously direc- ted at exerting maximum pressures on the Canadain gov- ernment, the ship owners and the Canadian Labor Congress, with the aim of elininating the trusteeship over the maritime unions. To what extent AFL — CIO President George Meany is in- volved in this operation, not to speak of some U. S. govern- ment circles, is a matter of speculation. Certainly it is dif- ficult to believe that the AFL-CIO Maritimes Trades Department would operate on its own on a matter of this kind without some encouragement from various sources. And if this be so, what has happened to the pledge given by the Executive Council of AFL-CIO to the Canadian Labor Congress, that ques- tions of jurisdiction in Canada are to be settled in Canada? Was this merely a scrap of paper or was it seriously meant? * * * Mr. Hall’s declaration of war against the right of the Canad- ian trade union movement to make its own decisions, indicates that he considers these agreements to be null and void, In this he acts like U.S. im- perialism does towards Panama, towards Cuba and many other countries. As far as he is con- cerned the Canadian trade union movement is merely an append- age of the U.S. trade union move- ment and must remain so for all time. The danger here is that these threats may be used by some monopoly interests in Can- ada and by the Canadian govern- ment to make a _ deal at the expense of Canadian trade union movement. Those who peddle the idea 1 | Visit | Moscow Kiev Leningrad and other GLOBE | Soviet Union SPECIAL 1st CLASS RATES ONLY $15.00 per day Contact mE Front By WILLIAM KASHTAN see no future for an indepen- dent and sovereign Canada will also peddle the idea that there is no place for a sover- eign Canadian trade union movement. * * * The trade union movement needs to be on the alert against such propositions and against anything which would deprive it of its right to make decisions in the interests of Canadian work- ers. As it is there are rumors afloat that pressures are being exerted on some unions to with- draw resolutions calling for aut- onomy and sovereignty which they had forwarded to the coming CLC convention. It would be a shameful thing were this agreed to. Concurrently with Mr. Hall’s threat of war on the Great Lakes, growing pressure has been ex- erted on the trustees from var- ious sources in Canada, call- ing for Bank’s removal from the SIU. Irrespective of the motives behind this demand, what is lost sight if is the more urgent prob- lem confronting Canadian sea- men—the necessity of achieving good settlements in the industry. * * * The seamen, irrespective of what union they belong to, must have the opportunity of work- ing out their demands. At the same time it is in their im- mediate and long term interests to cooperate with each other and establish a joint council for pur- poses of negotiations with the shipping companies. : They need to be particularly alert against any measures or proposals which would take away their hard won rights and, as with other sections of organized labor, set themselves new tar- gets to achieve in this year’s negotiations. It is not the task of the trus- tees to replace the unions in ne- gotiations nor to influence their demands, That job belongs to the rank and file of seamen and the more they speak up and act unitedly, the sooner will it be possible to move in the direc- tion of a Canadian federation of Maritime unions democratically controlled by Canadian seamen. For the trade union move- ment as a whole Mr, Hall’s declaration of war poses a ques~- tion which the coming CLC con- vention will have to answer: ‘¢Dare we be masters in our own house?”’ We shall come back to this in a later column. cities in the TOURS By JACK PHILLIPS As first proposed, the Can- ada Pension plan was supported by organized labor. It was to be a contributory, universal, port- able pension plan, operated by the federal government, It was to provide a maximum pension, to begin with, of $175 a month at 70 or $118 at 65, on earn- ings of $4,000 a year ($333 a month) or more. Those with low- er average earnings were to re- ceive smaller pensions. This $175 was to be made up ‘of the $75 Old Age Security payable to all Canadians at 70 and the maximum contributory pension of $100. The last formula agreed to was that the contributory pension would be financed by a tax on payrolls, shared equally by em- ployees and employers. It was to be 2 percent of payroll between 1966 and 1975. Actuarial estimates pegged the 1990 rate at 4 to 43 percent and the 2055 rate at from 4.4 to 6.7 percent. The $10 increase in Old Age Security was to be financed from income taxes. Only 28 percent of the Canad- jan labor force is covered by eccccccccessecccescsseeesoeeeeee® | Pension plan can be saved— by determined, united action of portability. The minimum standard was to provide smaller pensions than the federal plan, “but the scope of the insurance companies was to be greatly extended, because cov- erage was to be expanded and they would benefit thereby. What with the pressure of the insurance lobby against the fed- eral plan, to kill it or reduce benefits, and the actions of the Quebec and Ontario governments, a crisis developed for the Pear- son administration. To find a way out, Ottawa called a meeting with all pro- vincial premiers. What was missing at this time (and what is still missing) was the aroused and united pressure of the labor movement to save the Canada Pension Plan as originally pro- jected. At the conference, certain compromises were arrived at. Quebec representatives express- ed satisfaction that the increase from $65 to $75 in Old Age Security Pension was to be fin- anced out of income taxes and not from the payroll tax. They agreed to join with Ot- tawa-to work out the necessary pb 66.0010 0,0 68 2,00.00 000, 00.5:9'0,0:6:9,0.0 90 0108S C 8 100 Ce Ot gee SUPPORT A CANADA PENSION PLAN | support the principle of a Canada Pension Plan to provide portability ... wage related benefits . .. eligibility for full pension ct age 65.. | urge you to support the early enactment of sucha Canada Penson Plan by the Parliament of Canada. . protection against inflation. TTT TTI ld Ries oa eee ects cceb ences ceebesssecwcesssmiece snes canoes s Above is the text of a Post Card to MPs being circulated in the tens of thousands by the Canadian labor movement. All that is required to speak out against the Liberal betrayal on pensions is to clip the above, sign it and mail it (postage free) to your MP. private plans. These plans have different levels of contributions and benefits and, in most cases, no portability. If you leave the employment covered by your pri- vate pension plan, you get no more than the money you put into it. Federal Pensions were to be- gin in January, 1966. The con- tributory pensions were to be paid on a graduated scale, with maximum payments after the plan was 10 years old. This would not have affected the Old Age Se- curity pension of $75 at 170. Then, complications set in. The governments of Quebec and Ont- ario announced that they were pre-empting the pension field, which provinces can do under ‘the British North America Act. “~ Both announced they would in- ‘ stitute their own plans. In the case of Quebec, this was an expression of the desire of the French Canadian people to be recognized as an equal part- ner’in Confederation, It appears that the fund in that province is to be initially financed by a tax of 4 percent of payroll (twice the ‘federal figure). ‘ The reserves built up by this pension tax are to be used for expanding Quebec’s economy, through establishing new indus- tries and extending others. In the case of Ontario, Premier Robarts and his government were acting on behalf of the private details to integrate their plan with the federal one, to protect the equity of persons moving to and from the province. In the case of the Ontario rep- resentatives, they were placated by three commitments, Firstly to reduce the maximum benefits at 70 in order to stren- gthen the position of private pen- sion plans in Ontario. Whereas the original plan provided $175 a month for a person earning $$333 a month, the new plan provided $142 and only $150 for the person earning $375 a month, Secondly, a larger reserve would be built up and half this money would be invested in provincial or provincially - guaranteed se- curities. Thirdly, payments at 65 would not commence until after the fund had been operating for five years, With half the workers in On- tario covered by private pension plans, Robarts wanted to make The Ass'n of United Ukrainian Canadians presents Shevchenko Festival Concert Celebrating 150th Anniversary of the 7 Birth of the Great Ukrainian Bard Queen Elizabeth Theatre * sure that the insurance tycoons would be protected. a Under the’ new formula, the — maximum pension at 65 for a pera it did for those below this levely But with the ceiling fof earnings raised to $375, a neW benefit ceiling of $126 was es: tablished. It was felt that this would. bring the Canada Pension Plan more into line, benefit- wis with private plans which normally have a retirement age of To obtain this agreement, OF tawa agreed to a means test for those under 70 who eleé early retirement. The pension® was to be allowed $900 a year ® earnings, not counting N come from property or a P vate pension plan. : Late in January of this yea Canadian Press announced Ut agreement had been reached P tween Ottawa, Quebec and Onta and that the necessary integra would be worked out. ag In the case of Ontario, ™ legislation to compel all employ ers to institute a private pl@ was to be held back. Initial c@ ing on income, for contributi? and benefits, was to be $4, a year, in place of $4,000. Then, on February 14, we we informed thatthe Ontario gove ment had sent a six-page lev to the federal government ing four new objections: 2 ‘1.The maturity period bell” maximum benefits are tobe (Robarts wants this period tended beyond 10 years). 2. Large subsidies to those tiring early in the life of plan. (Robarts objects). 3. Automatic adjustments, the plan progresses, in the come ceiling, for contributio® and for pensions. (Robarts jects). 4, Fifty percent of reserves © be available to provinces. (RO? arts wants 90 percent). ; The voice of the private insu” ance companies is plainly he in this quotation from the R0 arts’ letter: ‘‘We are convill that the Canada Pension Plan™ cause major disturbances to isting plans.’’ In short, he is being pu to repudiate the compromise mula he agreed to at the feder® provincial meeting. It appears that the Plan, W was to be presented as legis tion to the next session of liament, may be postponed f0 least a year. : The labor movement sho! waste no time in mobilizing forces to save the Canada sion Plan. Trade union mem?” should avail themselves of post card being distributed bY © Canadian Labor Congress a produced on this page. Members of parliament $ be flooded with telegrams, ters and protests! 7 should be no reduction i} — benefits as originally proP? nov insurance companies which control vast sums of money col- lected through private pension plans in that province. The legislation enacted in On- -tario provided that every employ- er of 15 or more workers would be required to have a plan con- forming to minimum standards aind jorovidine a limited derree Sunday, March 8th, 8 p.m. @SONGS e@MUSIC e COLORFUL DANCES ys fetideca teal IN ENGLISH ‘ st Speaker from USSR EMBASSY ° : Handicraft Display and Sale of Ukrainian Home-Baking in Foyer ADMISSION — Reserved Seats: $1.00, $1.50, $2.00 Available at AUUC Hall, 805 E. Pender, MU 4-9720 or Peoples Co-op Book Store, MU 5-5836 DOORS OPEN 7 P.M. — EVERYONE WELCOME TRAVEL AGENCY 615 SELKIRK AVE., WINNIPEG, MANITOBA JU. 6-1886 FREE: Travel bag with every overseas air ticket (from Dec. to March)