ED BROADBENT CUPW AWARD SCORED BY PARROT The binding contract im- posed by an arbitrator on the Canadian Union of Postal Workers was “‘even worse than expected, rolling back some of the existing conditions in the previous agreement,” com- mented CUPW president Jean- Claude Parrot. Parrot said that the ‘“medi- ator-arbitrator has, with one stroke, taken away many of the major protections we have achieved over the last twelve years — protections in such areas as shop steward’s rights and responsibilities, surveil- lance and severance pay.” The award which runs until the end of this year increases a mail handler’s pay to $7.25 an hour and a postal clerk’s wage t6 $7.50 an hour beginning July 1. But the increase includes 90 cents of an existing cost-of- living allowance of $1.04 an hour, with the remaining 14 cents an hour being kept under COLA. yw Yo ~ ercial Or THE LUMBER WORK 2959 Comr RETURN REQUESTED In other words, a postal clerk earning $6.29 an hour plus a $1.04 an hour for COLA under the old agreement will get an actual raise of only 31 cents an. hour. The increase in a mail handler’s wages is, under the hew agreement, only 22 cents an hour. Parrot said that the wage award is lower than the government’s initial offer of last July and will mean that the real wages of postal workers will be 2 per cent lower than in 1976. The arbitrator, Lucien Tremblay, a former Quebec Supreme Court judge, rejected CUPW’s demands for a veto over technological change until agreement is reached on how to minimize its effects. He also rejected demands for a shorter work week and a minimum wage of $9 an hour. As well he denied a request for an end to television surveillance of em- ployees, saying that it should only be used to prevent crime not for monitoring job per- formance. Disputes over technological change will be dealt with by a single arbitrator appointed by the Public Service Staff Rela-_ tions Board chairman. CUPW made some small gains however, including a mechanism for speeding up grievances related to suspen- sions or dismissals and in- creased rest breaks. As well, meal allowances on extra long days have been increased. In addition Tremblay awarded permanent em- ployees lump-sum payments of $200 for the last six months of 1977 and $618 for 1978. The amounts were suggested by the federal government as_ the maximum permissible under the anti-inflation guidelines. Part-time employees also re- ceived some benefits. 'MEET ED BROADBENT | Ed Broadbent was elected leader of the New Democratic Party at the - party’s July 1975 federal convention, and _ since that date he has led the party in its fight inside and outside the House of Commons for economic and social reform. | During his three years of leadership, his con- stant pressure on the Trudeau government to get the economy moving to create work for the more than a million un- employed has earned him respect among his col- -leagues in the Commons, journalists and many Canadians. SS MSS ere it \ \ y Vol. XLVII No. 5 In focussing on the issues of basic concern to working Canadians — jobs and prices — he has become widely regarded as the “‘real leader of the opposition” in Canada. His years of leadership have also been a period of extensive travel across thé country, meeting thousands of: people, making hundreds _ of speeches and media ap- pearances, making him probably the most travel- led politician of the day. He has also paid close attention to the need for strengthening the organ- izational muscle of the federal party, an effort thewestern canadian ~ tumber worker VANCOUVER, B.C. <=>? which has resulted in the NDP now being more © prepared than ever in its history to contest the federal election. Mr. Broadbent’s elec- tion as federal leader followed a long career of active service to the party, and a distinguish- ed eight years as the MP representing his home riding of Oshawa- Whitby. He first sought election to the House of Commons in 1968 and defeated _ Michael Starr, former PC labour minister, by a scant margin of 15 votes. See “BROADBENT” page 3 © MAY, 1979 BROADBENT DEMANDS: END TO UNFAIR PRICE INCREASES NDP leader Ed Broadbent warned that no one can expect worker’s wage .demands_ to remain reasonable ‘‘when price increases outstrip wage increases in a ratio of three to two.” _ ; Broadbent, commenting on the AIB food index which in- dicated that food prices have been rising at an annual rate of 21.7 per cent, said no one can expect wage demands to re- main reasonable ‘‘unless effec- tive steps are taken now to roll back unfair price increases.” With the rising cost of food “added with other high price increases, all Canadians are finding it more and more difficult to make ends meet. Pensioners and low income families are affected even more adversely,” he said. NDP researchers, along with farm and consumer groups have concluded after examining high prices, that retailers and processors in the food industry are driving up higher prices with higher profit margins,” Broadbent said. Although wages have often been blamed for rising food prices Broadbent pointed out that Statistics Canada says that in the food and beverage industry, wages only make up about 8.5 per cent of the whole- sale cost of processed food. “Since for the last year average hourly earnings in the food and beverage industry increased by 7.4 per cent between November 1977 and November 1978, the wage factor should have added only .6 per cent, or less than one per cent to the wholesale price of food and about the same pro- portion to the retail price,’’ he said. Even though prices to far- mers have increased, Broad- bent said that ‘‘in every case this can be justified. What cannot be justified is the differ- ence between farm gate prices and retail prices.” While the cost of pork is up by 11.7 per cent ‘‘it is only up by 1.6 per cent at the farm gate.” As well poultry “‘is up 33 per cent at the retail level but only up 14 per cent for the farmer.” Broadbent, challenging the food industry’s profits as a source of high profits, isolated George Weston Ltd. as a food conglomerate ‘“‘which controls the largest single share of the industry, has scored an 84.2 per cent increase in profits in the past year. In 1977, Weston’s had profits of $27.4 million while in 1978 these profits climbed to 50.6 million.” Stressing the need to roll back unfair prices Broadbent noted that ‘“‘when we moved a nes SS PAY INCREASES GIVEN A Swedish Labour Court recently awarded a pay in- crease for fifty women metal workers because their jobs were monotonous. While the verdict has created a precedent'in Sweden, it will not automatically mean wage increases for workers in similar occupations. FOR MONOTONOUS JOBS “Their labour unions will have to conduct negotiations with the employer associations at the local level. If this is not successful, they can follow it up through the various stages to the Labour Court. It is believed that thousands of workers with boring jobs will have their unions negotiate increases for them. motion calling for the estab- lishment of a Fair Prices Com- mission both the Liberals and Conservatives stood together to vote against a Fair Prices Commission.’”’ The proposed commission would not only have the power to investigate, on a selective basis prices but when they are discovered, would have the power to roll back such increases, he said. COURT | BACKS - BOARD A provincial labour board - was within its rights when it ordered the New Brunswick Liquor Corp. to stop replacing striking employees with man- agement personnel, the .- Supreme Court of Canada has ruled. In a unanimous decision the court said the decision of the Public Service Labour Relations Board was not subject to review. The high court found that the Appeal Division of the Supreme Court of New Bruns- wick erred when it reviewed and overturned the decision of the-labour relations board. The issue arose during a legal strike in 1977 by the Can- adian Union of Public Em- ployees against the New Brunswick Liquor Corp. As a result of complaints filed by the company and the union, the labour relations board issued two decisions — that the union stop picketing and that the liquor control board. stop replacing strikers with man- agement personnel. The union complied with the order to stop picketing, but the corporation appealed the order to stop using managers as strike- breakers.