Uperations’use ready Lo move, Ine! -IWA Labor Day Dance Chemainus Community Hall Saturday, September 5th Y Bi-weekly Bulletin Published by The B.C. District Council, Internationa 1 Woodworkers of America, (CIO), Affiliated with Canadian Congress of Labor VOL, XI. No. 16 VANCOUVER, B.C., SATURDAY, AUGUST 29, 1942 . Broadway @EZp» Printers Led. (276) IWA Gets Majority Vote For ISLAND CONFERENCE OF NINE CAMPS Following on the rapid organizational gains made by Local 80 in the last two months, and in line with the program adopted in the Midsummer IWA Conven- tion, a conference is being called in the Nanaimo United Mine Workers’ Hall on Sunday, August 30, at 11 a.m, ~ The conference will discuss proposals for negotiations and ways and means of centralizing and coordinating the drive for agreements, Nine logging camps and sawmills have been invited to elect five delegates each, to draft a policy and pro- gram, which will later be submitted to each Sub-Local for a vote in accordance with the ICA Act in preparation for the opening of negotiations as soon as all ‘ded in the Sub-District Conference will be all operations of any size in the Cowichan Lake, Hillerest, Mayo, Youbou, Duncan, Chemainus and Fanny Bay areas under the jurisdiction of Local 1-80, which are not already under agreement. A number of wage increases have al- ready been gained through application to the Regional War Labor Board, and nine briefs are now in the process of prepara- tion for submission by the IWA, request- ing an upward adjustment of payrolls to bring them up to a standard equal to the highest in the industry. MILL WORKER KILLED IN CITY A belated report received this week tells of the death by drowning of Preston Wal- ter Higgs, who fell from a boom of logs while working at B.C. i Box Ltd. at the foot of Heather St. somo time ago. Verdict of | woodworkers @ coroner's jury was haye been accidental death, Killed in B.C,'s A sad accident oc~ Jumber in- curred to 14-year-old | dustry since Don Breslin, of 3707 | Jan. 1, 1942 Patterson Ave. who hed four fingers of his left hand ampu- tated while at work at Alaska Pine Co. Harold Jones, boomman at Bloedel, Stewart and Weich mill at the foot of Boundary Road, was rescued from drown- ing by fellow workers, when he fell off Union Contract In Fras NEW WESTMINSTER, B.C.—At an enthusiastic meeting on Sunday, | August 23, the crew from Fraser Mills packed into the Queens Park | Arenex and voted 876 to 3 to adopt the IWA proposed working agree- ment as a basis for negotiations with the company. A union committee of six was also elected and instructed to negotiate the agreement, con- sisting of Percy Smith, L. Hathaway, E. Meyers, Sid Stephens, members of IWA Local 1-217, International Representative Jack Greenall and IWA District President Harold Pritchett. This meeting was the result of an in- tense three-months’ organizational cam- paign carvied on by the employees in this operation. The committee had the assistance of the officers of the District Council and of Local 1-217, which now has well over one thousand members in this operation. The committee is to be commended on its outstanding work. The company has’ been informed, by regictered mail, of the employees’ desires and the committee is waiting for word as to when it will be possible to meet for negotiations, They hope it will not be necessary to apply for conciliation and arbitration and that necotiations willbe | speedy and amicable. During the Arenex meeting on Sun- day, wave after wave of applause answered the statement of Harold J. Pritchett that the IWA is asking that Canadian labor be given a chance to play its part in defeating fascism, not next year or the year after, but this year. It is obvious that as long as labor is denied the right of collective bargain- ing through an organization of its own choice the war effort will be consider- ably hindered. The tremendous upsurge in the desire for organization in this area was shown by. the fact that people from. many mills and other industries in the Royal City at- tended. Wives and friends of the mén from Canada’s largest sawmill are def- initely interested in seeing Canadian de- mocracy work to establish better wages and working conditions. The results of this meeting have caused every millworker in this area to become union-minded. The IWA office at Sixth and Columbia in New Westminster has been overrun with requests for assistance in organization, Fraser Mills’ employees expressed a de- sire to obtain their own charter and be- come a full-fledged IWA local. If the same degree of organization which was evident at the meeting is maintained they will soon realize their objective. Wrong Date Given Due to an unfortunate typo- the boom and was dragged down by heavy boots and clothing. His brother-in-law safety, Artificial respiration was suc- cessfully applied by firemen from No. 12 ‘fireball. and a friend jumped into the Fraser | River fully clothed and hauled him to graphical mistake in the printing of the Labor Day dance tickets, the date on the tickets was given as “Saturday, August 28, 1942” instead of SATURDAY, SEP- TEMBER 5, 1942, as it should have heen. The date on the post- | ers, however, is correct, New IWA Organtzer JACK GREENALL . who received word this week of his appointment as International Organizer from the International office in Port- land, Greenall, with the employees’ committee and District President Har- old Pritchett, has been instrumental in organizing Fraser Mills. er Mills PLYWOODS DISPUTE FEARING ENDS Arbitration proceedings in the Mac- Millan Industries .(Plywoods Division) concluded this week with the presenta- tion of summaries to the hoard by Walter Owen, attorney for the company, and Harold J. Pritchett, IWA District: presi- dent, for the employees. In the summary for the company’s case, Walter Owen expressed the same anti- union policy which he and the company had adopted through this dispute. Ac- cording to Owen, the company has at all times dealt with their employees in a very democratic and’ generous manner. He could not, however, explain away the very suggestive fact that in the 1939 sell- out and in the 1942 lay-off all ranking officials of the union were fired without just and sufficient reason, jécn aheJeraployeesticese, summarized, by Harlod J, Pritchett, the points listed for arbitration were: (1) a union agreement; () discrimination of employees for union activities, and (3) wages. Pritchett pointed out that only when labor was granted the right to bargain on an equal basis with management could full cooperation and production be ob- tained. The relations between manage- ment and employees were not harmoni- ous, as Owen would have the board be- lieve. In fact, the minutes of the Con- ference Committee, company-sponsored, prove beyond a doubt that a very distinct undercurrent of dissatisfaction existed in the plant. This was not caused by outside interference as Owen would have the board believe. It was, in fact, caused by the inadequate representation which is a characteristic of company unions. The crew of Alberni Pacific Lumber, Company, Camp 1, also a MacMillan com- pany, held their meeting last Friday week lend decided to form o sub-local of the |TWA in that plant, Dick Custer was jelected president for the new sub-local; Gordon Gibberd, vice-president; Brother jMacNamee, sceretary; Slats Mosher, warden, and Bob Cornwell, conductor. At Alberni Pacific Lumber Company |mill, a meeting was held on August 16 Alberni Mills And Camps - Organized Into [WA : PORT ALBERNI, B.C.—As a result of meetings organized by Inter- national Representative Hjalmar Bergren, two new sub-locals of IWA Local 1-85 were formed here last weekend. Employees of Alberni Plywoods Ltd., a branch of MacMillan Industries Ltd., at a meeting last Sunday, elected Les Hutchison as president; Mary Prochneau, vice-president; Clifford Schultz, secretary; Gus Boquist, con- ductor, and Helen Tohlman as warden, for the sub-local in this plant, one of the largest producers of plywood for export in the province and em- ploys approximately 320 men and women. and officers elected for the employees there. Walter Yates, president; Alex Peterson, vice-president; Paul Nichol, secretary, and W. O. Kelley, warden. Members of Bloedell, Stewart and Welch's Alberni mill elected Dennis John- son, president; Eric Rumming, vice-presi- dent; Eddie Creelman, secretary; Peter” Dobie as warden, and established their* own sub-local.