Vol. XXII, No. 8

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2nd ISSUE, APRIL - VANCOUVER, B.C.

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UNION’S NEGOTIATORS ; aE SRA ee "

“IWA DISTRICT NEGOTIATING COMMITTEE, at present est Industrial Relations Ltd. on the terms of the Coast master contract, 1954-55.

engaged in negotiations with

For- (Seated, left to

right) 1st Vice-President, William Gray; President, Joe Morris; 3rd Vice-President, Fred Fieber; Committee Secretary. (Standing, from left) J. MacKenzie, President, Local 1-118; Joe Miyazawa, Associate Research Director; Walter Allen, President, Local 1-85; Stuart M. Hodgson, 2nd Vice- President; Warren Lowrey, President, Local 1-367.

STRIKE LEVY _OKAYED

Approval of a strike fund assessment of $1.00 per month per member, and the adoption of all amendments to the District by-laws was given by the recent mem- bership referendum, it was announced this week by District Secretary-Treasur- er George Mitchell.

This announcement followed the report of the District Tabu- lating Committee members, Lloyd Whalen, Walter Allen, and George Mitchell to the District Executive Board this week.

In each instance, the vote had been authorized by the Annual District Convention. The strike fund assessment was considered necessary to restore the strike fund to a safe level after the Interior strikes.

The by-law amendments were proposed to remove difficulties encountered in the satisfactory interpretation of District proce-

See “STRIKE” Page 3

WHAT'S INSIDE

“They Subtract

But Don’

t Add”

Sixteen counter-proposals made by Forest Indus- trial Relations Ltd. on behalf of the Coast lumber operators when negotiations opened on April 15 with the IWA District Negotiating Committee urged among other matters, a re-negotiation of the board rates in logging camps, a reduction in piece rates for shingle mill workers, and a penalty clause in the event of any

illegal work stoppage.

The bargaining’ talks opened with the presentation of the Union’s eight contract demands by the committee’s spokesman, District President Joe Morris. In the’ensuing week, discussion centred around these demands, but no official announcement was possible as to agreement on any single point.

The sessions continued into the week commencing April 26, with the Union’s representatives expressing the determination to achieve a settlement, if possible, before leaving the bargaining table.

Proposed amendments to the existing contract, which the em- ployers’ representatives laid on the table for consideration of the Union, are as follows, in sum- mary: 3 1, That the rates for board

and lodging in the camps be re-negotiated.

The obvious reason for this proposal is to demand an in- crease in board rates a proposal which has met with determined opposition by the Union as re- presenting a reduction in the take-home pay of the loggers.

2, That there be a reduction in the rate of pay for piece work in the shingle industry.

This proposal counters the one advanced by the Union, which urges a stabilization of these

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HCJOR

piece work rates, to protect the earnings of shingle mill workers, as now urgently required.

3. That a clause be added to the Master Agreement provid- ing that employees, who fail to carry out their ordinary duties by reason of an illegal work stoppage or a concerted refusal to comply with normal procedure during the life of the agreement, may forfeit all seniority rights, without prej- udice to any other recourse which the employer may have under the agreement.

The above proposal is evi- dently intended to penalize those who may participate in “job action”. It is also intended to deal with refusals to work over- time under certain conditions. The Union has always taken the position that such penalty clauses are unnecessary if griev- ances are dealt with promptly and justly under the agreement.

4, That “security employees”

be added to the exceptions under the section in the con- tract which defines those to be considered as within the bar- gaining unit.

This is apparently intended to place such employees in the same category as ‘confidential

See “SUBTRACT” Page 3

7.00 p.m. Thursday

5c PER COPY|

LISTEN TO

CONCILIATION

Bargaining between the

ciliation Officer.

In a public statement issued by District President Joe Morris, when the employers forced ter- mination of the discussions, he said:

IWA bargaining with Forest Industrial Relations Ltd., with regard to the terms of 1954-55 Coast Master Agreement be- came deadlocked yesterday, and was terminated.

This sudden development followed a surprise maneuver on the part of the employers’ representatives, as on the pre- ceding Tuesday, the IWA Ne- gotiating Committee had, in good faith, expressed readiness to conclude an agreement at the bargaining table on all the issues involved. We were given reason to believe that the em- ployers would join with us in a genuine effort to exhaust every possibility of settlement while the bargaining. conferences were in progress.

When the employers’ repre- sentatives returned after the one-day recess, they stipulated “that the Union would be re- quired to withdraw all pro- posals for an additional degree of union security as a prior condition to any agreement on any or all of the remaining pro- posals for contract revision.

This insistent demand for the elimination of one of the Union’s major proposals from the discussions as the price to be paid for any hope of settle- ment, precluded the possibility of agreement being reached at this stage.

The IWA Negotiating Com-

. Full union security.

on piece-work rates.

industry.

IWA Policy Committee acting for the Union in the Pacific Northwest States, set May 8rd as a strike deadline, when the results of a recent strike vote were tabulated and reported at its recent session in Port- land.

Highlights of recent develop- ments in the area are:

1, The membership cast the largest strike-vote ever tabulated by this Union. Every region in the Northwest voted in favor of the ‘strike being called.

2, The economics of the indus- try and factors relating to it already indicated that all sec-

tions of the industry are ahead

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LKS COLLAPSE

OWNERS’ ATTITUDE FORCES

ON UNION

IWA and Forest Industrial

Relations Ltd. reached a stalemate on Thursday, April 29, when the employers’ representatives said that there could.be no settlement during the talks, unless the Union abandoned all demands for additional union security. Application has been made for the appointment of a Con-

mittee would not be coerced into making this “deal”, which would make a farce of the bar- gaining procedure. We would not accept the employers’ proposition to “sell out” the interests of the membership on this vital point.

We were, therefore, left no alternative but to refer the dispute, so created, to the Con- ciliation Branch of the Depart- ment of Labor. It is antici- pated that a Conciliation Offi- cer will now be appointed to deal with the dispute.

The employers’ attitude to- ward any form of genuine union security amounts to a fixation, which ignores the trend in modern labor-manage- ment relations. It is based on their opposition to the com- plete unionization of their em-" ployees.

All their pretexts for refus- ing to consider this non-cost item in our contract demands relate to situations provoked by this attitude toward union- ization, and which creates an atmosphere in which the em- ployees feel they must battle constantly for their rights.

Those employers who genu- inely desire more harmonious Jabor - management relations, should adopt an attitude of co- operation with their employees as organized within the Union, and encourage rather than un- dermine the orderly and demo- cratic bargaining arrange- ments which can be developed only when the Union is made secure in its bargaining status.

1954-55 CONTRACT DEMANDS . Six additional paid statutory holidays.

. Day rates and negotiating rights for workers now Retention of seniority during lay-off.

. Sunday pay at time and one-half for watchmen, boatmen, and plant guards.

. Job analysis program for entire industry. . Medical services plan, employer-paid, for the ‘whole

8. Free transportation from hiring point to job.

Union Sets Strike Date

of 1952’s big year in production, sales and orders. ~

8. Hourly productivity of the workers has increased about 10 percent in the last two years but the workers have not derived any benefits from it.

4. The strike deadline is set for Monday, May 3, 1954. It will commence at the beginning of the day shift, whatever hour that may be in a particular operation.

The Union’s demands in these negotiations are: (1) 12%4-cent per hour wage increase across- the-board; (2) correction of job rate inequities based on job analysis of the industry; (3) three weeks’ vacation after five years.

6.30 p.m. Thursday

son. See e-