Election of president tied up with policy direction of B.C. Fed

The B.C. Federation of Labor officers were expected to meet this week to make a firm recommendation on the person to fill the position of president, left vacant by the death of Jim Kinnaird Feb. 19. A final deci- sion will be made when the full executive council meets in mid-June.

But it may still be some time before the direction the federation will take under its new leadership will be clearly determined.

Although it has been three months since Kinnaird’s death, not until now has there been any specific timetable set to appoint a new president nor have there been any clear- cut candidates. The indecision is partly because of the considerable stature that Kin-

naird had in the trade union movement and -

partly because of the provincial election campaign which intervened.

A meeting of the federation’s executive council in April put off the decision on a new leader until after the provincial election.

The name of Gerry Stoney, regional secretary-treasurer of the International Woodworkers and provincial president of the NDP, had been touted as a possible can- didate who had the backing of the two largest federation affiliates, the IWA and the B.C. Government Employees Union.

But Stoney’s candidacy was.tied to the fortunes of the NDP in the election and to the election strategy adopted by the federa-

Kube, Steelworkers representative Monty’ Alton and Kramer himself, have been unable to secure enough support among af- filiates.

Widely expected to get the officers’ en- dorsement for the president’s position, is seventh vice-president Leif Hansen, a representative of the Meatcutters, now part of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union.

Appointed to the seventh vice-president’s spot in February, 1982, and acclaimed in the 1982 officers’ elections, Hansen has had lit- tle public profile either as a representative of the federation or the UFCW.

Hansen did declare himself to be a can- didate earlier this month but so far unstated is his position on the future policy direction of the federation. :

In fact, much of the discussion over the leadership has so far focussed on which can- didates would not be acceptable to a majori- ty of affiliates. And the debate over the policy direction will likely only begin with the appointment of a new president.

Whatever the timing, the future of the federation’s policy should be a matter for urgent debate.

The prospect of another term for the Social Credit government has raised the im- mediate questions: how will the trade union

ANALYSIS

tion, of maintaining a low profile while donating heavily to the NDP and urging union members to vote for the party.

That election strategy goes back to the NDP government’s defeat in 1975, a defeat which some unionists blamed on the public, political role of the federation, under the leadership of Len Guy and George Johnston, in campaigning on labor and other issues. Since that time, Stoney and

others, anticipating the re-election of an |

NDP government, have sought to move the federation closer to the NDP leadership and have sought to diminish a direct role by the federation in independent labor political ac- tion in favor of increased emphasis on sup- port for the NDP.

But the re-election of the Socreds May 5 threw into serious doubt the “‘lie low and vote NDP”’ strategy adopted by the trade union movement. It led many unionists to wonder about the effectiveness of a policy which submerged issues critical to the future of the labor movement in the interests of avoiding election controversy.

Federation secretary-treasurer Mike Kramer himself acknowledged following the election that labor ‘‘could have raised more issues in the campaign.”

The outcome also left the door virtually closed on Stoney’s leadership bid, at least for the immediate future.

Although sources indicate that there is still support among some larger affiliates for the TWA secretary, he has little backing amonga number of smaller but important affiliates.

Similarly, some other contenders closely associated with Stoney’s policies, including Canadian Labor congress representative Art

movement deal with the labor code changes currently under diseussion by the new government? How will it counter the bargaining table offensive being mounted by the employers in the mining and forest in- dustries?

A continuation of the approach that has prevailed over the last year or more — of avoiding a fight with government over key trade union issues, keeping the labor move- ‘ment out of the political arena except as a source of votes for the NDP — could have disastrous consequences given the Socreds’ renewed mandate.

Certainly, that approach has already been widely questioned by unionists but is hasn’t been discarded.

The call sent out by the federation leader- ship for the unemployment conference next

“month offers no program for organizing or

mobilizing the jobless, focussing instead on the next federal election and on self-help programs for the unemployed centres.

But there is mounting pressure for a change in direction, indicated by the many calls that have been made by labor councils for the federation to convene a delegated conference immediately of affiliates to discuss a co-ordinated approach to bargain- ing.

The Vancouver and District Labor Coun- cil last week also called on the federation to “‘endorse a labor fightback approach to the struggles facing working people in 1983.”’

That fightback approach may also be up for debate when the executive council meets June 14 to make the decision on a new presi- dent.

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READ THE PAPER THAT FIGHTS FOR LABOR

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PACIFIC TRIBUNE—MAY 27, 1983—Page 12

LABOR

‘Get

local at the Cominco lead zinc smelter at Trail has delivered strike notice to the company which, said Local 480 president Ken Georgetti, ‘‘will become effective the moment the mediator books out of the dispute.”’

The notice follows the resounding strike vote registered last week by local members who voted 94 percent in favor of strike action to back their demands. The vote was also an echo of an earlier vote in February when the local voted 96 percent to reject Cominco’s bid for con- tract concessions, including elimination of a scheduled Apr. 30 COLA increase and the elimination of the clause itself.

“The company had better get off its concessions kick,’’ Georgetti said Tues- day, adding that the company attitude “hasn’t changed a bit’’ since the strike vote was taken.

“We're still trying to reach a settlement — we’ve been striving to do that all along,”’ he said.

The six-month strike-lockout at the Mission branch of the Fraser Valley Credit Union ended Wednesday with the return to work of nine employees and a first contract that union negotiator Larry Widen called a ‘‘major victory’’.

The nine women bank workers in a 7-2 vote Monday ratified the agreement which provides an average 27 per cent wage hike and a closed shop, and which resolved several key grievances concern- ing promotions and transfers.

Larry Widen, regional representative of the Canadian Labor Congress and negotiator for the Union of Bank Employees Local 2100, said it was ‘‘a shame employees had to go through a six- month strike’’ and that ‘‘thousands of dollars were wasted’’ by the original, anti-union board of directors ina fruitless effort to thwart the union.

The agreement, hammered out during intense negotiations between the UBE and credit union trustee and ad- ministrator John Charlesworth, May 16-19, is retroactive to January, 1982 and expires Dec. 31, 1983. Key features in- clude: -

e A union shop. All non- management employees at the Mission branch are to be union members;

@ Theright of employees to stay at the Mission branch, ending the system of ar- bitrary transfer which would have soon ‘ended union representation at the branch;

@ Anend to the merit pay system. It has been replaced by an automatic pay hike every six months for each job . classification within a 30-month period; -

Unemployment for Penticton

The B.C. Federation of Labor’s unemployment committee has called a federation conference on unemployment for Penticton for the weekend of June 25 and 26.

It is expected to bring together unemployment action centre co-

off concessions kick’ Steel local tells Cominco

Steelworkers Local 480, the largest

Bank workers ratify contract at credit union in Mission

ordinators from around the province —

“But the company has got to changeils position,”’ he emphasized. _

Georgetti said that the union would be meeting for the first time Friday with mediator Richard Longpre, who was- called in by the company last week. |

He added that Cominco should not look to recent concessions at Cominco’s _ Pine Point, Northwest Territories, leat zinc mine as any indication of a change! mood. Miners thee accepted a 10 percent || pay cut and a COLA freeze in return for } the re-opening of the mine, closed since © January. a

“The guys there got blackmailed — they got an ultimatum that the mine” would be closed virtually permanently if 3 they didn’t take concessions,”’’ said | Georgetti. |

“But it hasn’thad any effect on Trail, he emphasized, ‘‘Our members are stilt © really strong.

‘And if Trail goes down, Cominco won’t have any place to process its ore.

@ Separate rates of pay for each job classification. Prior to the contract, threé positions at the Fraser Valley Credit Union — receptionist, teller, and member services — all paid the samé; even though a move from, for instances | receptionist to teller was considered 4 promotion. Additionally, when workers | are promoted from one classification tO | the next highest, they do so at arate which } involves no cut in salary; 4

@ Adequate job posting. A chief com: plaint from the employees concerned in- | adequate notice of job openings. Addi- tionally, classifications now involve trial periods of between 60 to 120 days, and an” employee who fails to make the grade 15 demoted, not fired as was previously thé case. j All employees also moved one step uP |) in the new, six-step pay scale system, upon returning to work, said Widen. |

Widen noted that the strike-lockout situation would have continued much | longer, were it not for the intervention of some 400 credit union shareholders band- ed together as the Save Our Credit Union committee.

The shareholders, led by former union — organizer Wally Ross, turfed out the nine-member board of directors at the annual general meeting Apr. 28, and elected a new board, following the | lockout of the striking employees Apr. | 25.

A court order subsequently abolished | both boards and appointed Charlesworth as trustee and administrator. New elec- tions for board of directors have yet to be held.

conference set June 25, 26 |

together with officers from labor councils and B.C. Fed representatives.

On the agenda is the federation’s unemployment program and the conti- nuing activities of the action centres.

There are 30 centres around the pro vince, 19 of which are run directly by labor councils.

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