Oshawa labor decides to set up
Full Employment Committee

By RUSS RAK

OSHAWA — The Oshawa and
District Labor Council
(O.D.L.C.) meeting Nov. 8,
unanimously endorsed an execu-
tive recommendation to set up a
Full Employment Committee.
The main purpose of this commit-
tee will be to bring the un-
employed together to start help-
ing themselves; to help them with
U.I.C., Welfare, WCB “and
Canada Pension problems; to
keep before the public, and to
educate the public to; the desper-
ate plight of the unemployed; and
to draw together the trade union
Movement, community groups,
the Churches, etc. to work to-
Ward putting pressure on various
levels of government to alleviate
the unemployment crisis.

Bill Cumptsy, chairman of the
Brampton Full Employment
Committee, spoke to the
O.D.L.C. delegates, pointing out

that the unemployed are facing a
multiplicity of. problems, and
many are in desperate cir-
cumstances. He emphasized that
the overwhelming majority of the
unemployed want ‘‘jobs not wel-
fare.’’ He said setting up full
employment committees was the
best way for the trade union
movement to assist the un-
employed and to bring about un-
ited pressure by workers on our
governments to create jobs.

The O.D.L.C. also endorsed a
letter to both Federal and Ontario
governments demanding that
INCO in Sudbury, be legislated to
continue production and cancel
the layoff of 3,400 workers. The
letter concludes that if INCO re-
fuses to comply with this order,
the government must nationalize
the nickel industry and bring it
under democratic control for the
benefit of Canada and the Cana-
dian people.

The O.D.L.C. is also demand-
ing that the use of Durham Region
Police acting as strikebreakers in
legal labor disputes, as was the
case at the Sandra Instant Coffee
strike in Ajax, must be stopped.
The O.D.L.C. intends to under-
take a campaign to have members
of the Police Commission elected
by the public, rather than ap-
pointed by government and big
business interests.

Correction

The Tribune wishes to
apologize for an error which oc-
curred in the lead story of the Oct.
24 issue, entitled ‘‘Labor blasts
Ontario health bill, jobs still un-
‘safe’. Hugh Peacock, legislative
representative for the Ontario
Federation of Labor was de-
scribed as the federation’s Health
and Safety Director. This position
is occupied by Ed Waddell.

Labor’s democratic

alternative

Despite all the manipulated
Statistics concerning unemploy-
ment, inflation and prognostica-
tions about the economy there are
No bright spots on the economic
horizon. All the measures taken
and proposed so far to ‘‘shake
down’’ and ‘‘correct’’ the system
have only proved the bankruptcy
of the policies of capitalist
gOvernments and the anti-labor,
Selfish and unpatriotic aims of the
Private corporate sector.

The main effort of government
and monopoly iis directed to hold
down wages while increasing

layoffs and “unemployment, to
Weaken the trade union move-
ment, step up the rationalization
of industry, intensify the exploita-
tion of the working class and bring
about a drastic cut in living stan-
dards. This-assault within the
€conomic sphere is accompanied

Y anti-labor propaganda aimed
to take away hard-won rights of
labor in the legislative field, par-
Ucularly the right to strike in the
Public sector and what is called
€ssential industries which is but a
Prelude to more far-reaching at-
tacks on all workers and all
Unions.

The answer to this must be a
Coalition of working class and.
democratic forces spearheaded

by the trade union movement and

directed against the multi-
Nationals, like Inco, and against
Monopoly in general. It must be
an all-embracing economic and
Political struggle for a democratic
Way out of the crisis and, for new
80vernments with new and _pro-
8ressive policies.
Break With Tripartism
_ This means a break with tripar-
Usm, a bankrupt concept that ties,
© workers to the mechanism of
State-monopoly capitalism. and,
Which seeks a reactionary way
Out of the crisis at the expense of
the working people. What is
heeded now is independent politi-
Cal action by the trade unions and
ll the democratic and progres-
Sive forces, political action that is

independent of monopoly and
reaction and directed against
wage controls and growing
unemployment.

While rejecting tripartism,
workers must continue to press
for new trade union rights, rights
which they presently do not have.
The trade unions should demand
democratic participation by all
workers in deciding questions,
such as technological change, the
moving away or closing of plants,
layoffs, health and safety, and
manpower planning.

While rejecting tripartism, the
coming CLC Convention at
Quebec City next April 3-7 needs
to replace it with a democratic
economic policy that will have as
its aim the curbing of monopoly
power and, to open the way for a
radical restructuring of the eco-
nomy in a way that will serve the
interests of the working people of
this country.

- Control Prices, Rents

In the course of fighting for a
democratic economic policy, the
leadership, of the trade union
movement must make it cléar that
working people are not against all
controls. It must explain. why
labor opposes wage controls,
while at the same time demanding
price controls on selected food-
stuffs, rents and, a curb on the
power of monopoly and cartel
arrangements to raise prices at
will. .
Moreover, the trade union
movement has to advance a wage
policy that compensates for price
rises plus current inflation, gives
labor a share in gains from in-
creased productivity, as well as

_provisions for a rise in living stan-

dards. Collective bargaining has
to embrace job security and im-
proved social security for the
working class at the expense of
profits.

The end: to wage controls and
the restoration of collective bar-
gaining must mean a stepped-up
fight to expand the economy, a
reduction in unemployment lead-

ing towards full employment, a
redistribution of incomes in favor
of the working people through
expanding social services, in-
creased pensions and reduced
taxes on working people, a pro-
gram for low.cost housing con-
struction, equal pay for work of
equal value for men and women,
vocational training at trade union
rates of pay for young people and
the right to a job for youth, a re-
duction of hours from 40 to 30 at
40 hours pay per week, the
organization of the unorganized
and, the struggle for a fully
sovereign, united and indepen-
dent trade union movement.
Common Program
In addition, the trade union

movement must take up the fight —

for public ownership of energy
and natural resources and the
development of secondary indus-
try, development of urban and
inter-urban transportation and
commuter services, a new made-
in-Canada Constitution based on
an equal voluntary partnership of
the two nations, English- and
French-speaking, and expansion
of trade with the socialist and
newly liberated countries, a
guaranteed annual income, stable
markets and prices for the far-
mers, a 50% reduction in arms
expenditures, and the withdrawal
from NATO and from NORAD.

The fight for such a program to
end the crisis and put the jobless
to work requires trade union and
workers’ unity in shops, mines
and mills of this country, more-
over, it calls for working-class
and democratic unity to advance
the economic and political strug-.
gles and to make them both more
effective.

Right-wing policies, that pre-
sently split and weaken the
fightback of the working people,
can be defeated if the left and
centre forces in the trade union
movement unite their efforts
around a common program such
as enunciated above, and fight un-
itedly for its realization.

POLICE ACTIONS
PROTESTED BY
CUPE

SAULT STE. MARIE — The

Canadian. Union of Public ©

Employees has protested ‘‘ex-
cessive and unwarranted use of
police and monitoring equip-
ment” at picket lines set up at a
private garbage company. Mem-
bers complained of a_ special
police van containing surveillance
gear recording activities of the
pickets in front of the Cherokee
Disposals and Construction Ltd.

INJURED WORKERS
PLAN DEMONSTRA-

TIONS

THUNDER BAY — Work-
men’s Compensation Board offices
in nine Ontario cities will be the
target of demonstrations by the
Ontario Union of Injured workers.
During the week of Nov. 21, the

board offices of the WCB in
Windsor, Sarnia, Chatham,
Hamilton, Toronto, Sudbury,
Welland, London and Thunder
Bay will be picketed.

OVERTIME HIT
BY BELL UNION

TORONTO — Bell Canada re-
pairmen and installers have at-

Attacked company policy which re-

quires them to work long over-
time hours while so many Cana-
dians are jobless. Members of the
Communication Workers of
Canada, representing 13,500
workers, repairmen and installers
have already walked out on wild-
cats in some cities. The union
charged the company would have
to provide many more jobs if
overtime were cut out. The union
also asked labor minister Munro
that time worked in excess of 8
hours per day, five days a week be
voluntary.

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PACIFIC TRIBUNE—NOVEMBER 25, 1977—Page 5

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