THE WESTERN CANADIAN LUMBER WORKER _ "PROGRAMME CREATING UNEMPLOY honest employers will have to follow suit to protect their own competitive position. There are many ways to circumvent the programme’s intent. For example, Crown Zellerbach received a. federal incentive grant when it built its multi-million dollar plywood operation at Armstrong, in the Southern Interior of British Columbia. As a new plant with a new product in the area, the Company would qualify for the top grant of 25 percent of its ‘capital cost up to $6,000,000. The plant has 160 employees who are members of the IWA. In addition to this plant, the Company has sawmills at Armstrong, Falkland and Enderby, which employ 106 IWA members. With all the peeler logs going to the plywood plant its a sure bet that in the near future, the Company will phase out the sawmills and install a chip-n- saw to handle its smaller logs. So in effect, the taxpayers’ money has been used to fatten Crown Zellerbach’s already swollen profits, at the expense of IWA members in three small B.C. communities. Crown Zellerbach is not the only large corporation to take advantage of the government’s generosity in the Okanagan area. The Noranda Mining Company built its new plants at Princeton and Okanagan Falls with incentive grants. Hiram Walker built its new distillery the same way. The American Can Company was given a government grant for its highly mechanized plant in Kelowna to employ six people. The large American firm Pope & Talbot qualified for a grant when it expanded the Boun- dary Sawmills. The Fiberform Company in Kelowna is one more example of the programme’s failure. This plant was started in 1968 with the aid of an incentive grant. The plant manufactured fiberglass boats under fran- chise from the Fiberform Company, a U.S. firm located in Spokane, Washington. After operating the plant long enough to pick up all of the grant, the owners sold out to the U.S. Fiberform Company, ‘and went happily off home, a lot richer thanks again to the government’s generosity with the taxpayers’ money. And all this was done quite legally due to the govern- ment’s stupidity in not foreseeing this eventuality. From labour’s point of view one of the biggest criticisms of the plan is its failure to write in safeguards for the protec- tion of workers employed in these plants. Shortly after the Fiberform Company changed ownership, the plant was certified to Local 1-423 IWA Kelowna. An effort was then made to negotiate a first agreement but was met with violent opposition by the Company. Prior to and_ during negotiations the Company was working the seventy em- ployees twelve hours a day six days a week, and anybody refusing the overtime was threatened with dismissal. The Company finally desisted when the Union complained to the Board of Industrial Relations. The Company then brought in its head office manager Don Barnes from the States to dictate its contract terms to the Union. These included a seven-day work schedule, em- ployees to work all overtime or face dismissal, no union security and no wage in- creases. Barnes was the former owner of the American Fiberform Company. He had purchased the business in the middle ’60s for $11,000 and sold out to U.S. Industry, a huge conglomerate in 1968 for $3,000,000. U.S. Industry retained him as general manager of Fiberform and he ruled the operation with an iron hand. It is alleged that he fired all the employees of the U.S. plant when they attempted to organize the operation. He did just that at the Cana- dian plant. When bargaining talks broke down, Local 1-423 applied for a mediation officer. Mediation officer Charlie Stuart attempted to get an agreement but the attitude of the Company made this im- possible. The Union then took a strike vote but through suspected pressure of management, it failed by one vote. The Com- pany then closed the plant using the excuse that work was slack. A short time later it resumed operations but without the pro-union em- ployees. Local 1-423 still retains certification of the plant but the anti-union attitude of the Company blocks almost all hope of winning an agreement. While labour recognizes that management has certain rights, these do not include the right to use the Canadian tax- payers’ money to break down the country’s living standards or union conditions. The government should recognize this and correct it. If this is not done Parliament should review the incentive programme and legislate proper controls. RON ROLEY Int. President ae oat Be Pe H. LANDON LADD Int. 2nd Vice-President TOP IWA OFFICERS RE-ELECTED All top IWA International officers were re-elected by acclamation at the Union’s International Convention September 20-24, in Kansas City. Re-elected for another two- year term were President Ronald F. Roley, First Vice- President Keith W. Johnson, Second Vice-President H. Landon Ladd, Secretary- Treasurer William Botkin and Trustee H. E. Geiger. The officers will be installed at a special meeting of the International Executive Board. KEITH JOHNSON Int. 1st Vice-President BILL BOTKIN Int. Secretary-Treasurer 52 East Cordova Street tested at Sells Bros. logging contracts — try them af yours, and watch SELLS BROS. SALES LTD. COURT RULES STRIKERS CAN BUILD UP SENIORITY An important arbitration decision strengthening the rights of workers on strike has sustained a court test. The Supreme Court of On- tario has refused to throw. out the decision of arbitrator Paul C. Weiler, a York University law professor, maintaining strikers build up seniority while on strike. The case was launched against Falconbridge Nickel Mines Ltd. by the Sudbury Mine, Mill and Smelter Workers’ Union. The company had tried to deduct seniority for the three months Falconbridge workers — about 3,000 at the time — spent on strike in 1969. Miners and other workers represented by the United Steelworkers of America at International SELLS BROS. INTRODUCES (SOME CHOICE DEALERSHIPS AVAILABLE) DISTRIBUTORS FOR DOLMAR CHAIN SAWS AND SABRE CHAIN our fallers’ scale slips increase. y' Telephone . Nickel were on strike at the same time. But the Steelworkers traded away the seniority rights in the settlement of their new con- tract. Mine-Mill challenged the company’s position that the strikers should have lost seniority credits. The particular case involves counting up time for vacations and promotions. Seniority counts for lay-offs, too, and other benefits in most union contracts. 2 Falconbridge said arbitrator Weiler had exceeded his jurisdiction in making his ruling. Mr. Justice W. A. Donohue upheld the decision, however. He said the ar- bitrator’s interpretation of “continuous service’ as defined in the contract was acceptable. DOLMAR ANOTHER FIRST FOR SELLS BROS.! NOW — DOLMAR CHAIN SAWS from Germany — where it all began forty years ago . . . with standard features like S.S, added solid state ignition — lifetime warranty on chromed cylinder blocks — no vibration. Three Dolmar models to choose from — Model C.T. full 12 H.P. for the professional faller in big timber, handles up to 60 inches — Model C.C. the lightweight intermediate, 9 H.P. — Model C.A. the midget lightweight 6 H.P. Dolmar has been thoroughly - - 684-7758 Vancouver 4, B.C. a navi faye ice i ON 1-424 STAFF New Business Agent of Local 1-424 IWA Prince George, Robert Bir- chette, whose application for the position was approved at the Local’s Quarterly Council Meeting October 3. GLOVE PROBLEMS: SOLVE THEM WITH THESE WATSON GLOVES AND MITTS ‘MILL-RITE’ ‘GREEN CHAIN’ “LUMBER LOADER’ Ger) JOHN ” WATSON LTD. pie! re OCTOBER, 1971 _ R971