B.

Cc. LUMBER WORKER

First Issue, April

NEWS

_ Items of Interest To
Labor In Capsule Form

CHARGES UNTRUE. . .. Millard

TORONTO — Canadian Steelworkers’ Director C. H. Millard |
denied charges by a Timmins, Ontario, councilman that $50,000 to |
$100,000 was still owed town merchants as a result of the recent |
strikes in the Northern Ontario goldfields. Over $1 million had‘
been paid the merchants by the NSWA, said Millard, and every
penny of debt outstanding would be paid, as was the custom of the
union in connection with strikes.

N.H.A. AMENDMENT DEFEATED

OTTAWA—A CCF attempt at a “last ditch” stand against the
government’s new national Housing Act was unsuccessful when an
amendment calling for a fixed limit for interest on NHA loans was
defeated 142-35. The government had not announced the interest
rate on loans during the debate and it was subsequently revealed to
be 542%—up %% from the previous rate.

ONTARIO CHECK-OFF OUT

TORONTO—Ontario Labor Minister Daley turned down a sug-
gestion contained in the Ontario Federation of Labor annual
legislative brief that the check-off be written into provincial labor
law. The check-off should be left to collective bargaining, said Daley.

T.C.A. PROFITS UP

OTTAWA — Publicly-owned Trans-Canada Air Lines showed a
profit of $256,280 during 1953. This was the third successive year
for the line to have an operating surplus. An all-time high of
1,307,810 passengers were carried during the year and 759 million
passenger miles were flown. The company’s six millionth passenger
since the start of TCA operations in 1937 was carried during 1953.

BANK MOTION DEFEATED

OTTAWA — A CCF proposal calling for public control and
operation of Canada’s chartered banks was defeated 21-171. CCF
Leader Coldwell said banks have a record of efficient management of
safety and profit to their shareholders, but they have not operated
in the interests of the general public.

TEXTILE INDUSTRY SACRIFCED

OTTAWA — J. Harold Daoust, Canadian Director TWUA,
charged that the textile industry of Canada had “been placed on the
sacrificial altar of government trade policies.” Cabinet Ministers
rejected TWUA suggestion of limitation of textile imports, strength-
ened anti-dumping laws, government contracts to depressed textile
areas and the delaying of a trade treaty with Japan, said Daoust
following meetings with members of the government.

JANUARY UIC FIGURES

OTTAWA — Unemployment insurance benefits for January
totalled $23,947,213, paid on account of 7,563,898 regular and supple-

mentary benefit days.

NO DEPRESSED INDUSTRY

OTTAWA—Canada’s gold mine-owners have ‘sold the public the
idea that gold mining is a depressed industry, Joe. Noseworthy
(CCF York South) said during a debate on a bill to extend the
Emergency Gold Mining Assistance Act for another year. Although
the mines can afford to improve conditions of employment, he said,

they refuse to do so,
CAR SALES DOWN
OTTAWA — Sales of new motor yehicles during January were
down by almost one quarter from the'comparative month of 1953,
DBS reports. Car sales were down 20 percent to 18,507 against
23,142 in January 1953 while truck sales were down 35 percent
from 7,061 to 4,626.
HANGING SUSPENSION REFUSED
OTTAWA — A request by Harold Winch that capital punish-
ment be suspended until a Parliamentary committee consideri

the matter reported its findings was refused by Justice M
Garson. Suspension should only be enacted through a change in

the present law which allowed hanging, he said.
PROFITS $53,694,526
TORONTO — Profit of International Nickel Co. for 1953 was
announced as $53,694,526, the third highest in company history.
1952 profit topped $58 million.

INVESTMENT BOARD URGED

OTTAWA — A national investment board to ensure funds for
development of socially desirable projects was urged in Parliament
by CCF Leader Coldwell. Such funds could be used for development
of Canada’s natural resources, the St. Lawrence Seaway and similar

measures, he suggested.

!
.

Publication date of the next issue of the B.C. LUMBER WORKER
is April 15th, Deadline for ad copy is April 8th and for news copy

April 9th.

BCLoxcediiWonwen

Repeerenting the Orgexiced Loggers end Mill Workers of B.C.
PUBLISHED TWICE MONTHLY ON THE FIRST

AND THIRD THURSDAYS BY
Intemational Woodworkers of America (CIO-CCL) gem,
B.C, District Council No. 1
8 > DISTRICT OFFICERS:
ae President ..... Joe Morris
2 Ist Vice-Presl ‘illiam N. Gray
ituart M. Hodgson

Vice-President

Vice-Rresident ~~ Fred Fieber
Treasurer, ‘George H. Mitchell

ernational Board Member —........ Walter F. Allen

: Address all communications to
GEORGE H. MITCHELL, #ecretary-Treasurer
45 Kingsway - Phone FAtrmont 8807-8
Vancouver, B.C.

Subscription Rates... $1.60 per annum
dvertivin f REVO rn, Ay

24,000 COPIES PRINTED IN THIS

Illustrated is the Cruiser’s
Stag of pure virgin wool
in mackinaw or kersey.
Mackinaw plaids are either
red and black; green and
black, or blue and black. v

iS

Notice the four large pockets in front, and the large
pack pocket in back, which opens at both sides... a
feature of both mackinaw and kersey garments.
These are two of the many designs of “Pioneer
Brand” clothing obtainable from your commissary
or favorite dealer. &
Made in Vancouver, B. C., by Jones Tent & Awning
Ltd., they are designed through careful study of the
needs and desires of B.C. workmen.

FOR WORK CLOTHING

UNSTINTED MATERIALS

OF

DESIGN and
WORKMANSHIP

“EMPTY. BUDGET”

“The 1954 Budget can be described as the ‘Empty
Budget’,” Donald MacDonald, Secretary-Treasurer of the |
Canadian Congress of Labor, said today. “Finance Min-
ister Abbott has missed a golden opportunity to make a
contribution to the solution of the grave unemployment
situation by failing to provide direct tax relief for wage
and salary earners. This would have increased consumer
purchasing power.”

“)fr, Abbott is apparently not |————H———__—
sufficiently concerned about the} ployment areas, only four small

number of workers without jobs, | localities were not in the ‘labor

ow CGE

surplus’ category. In half the
areas, including metropolitan
centres, at least one in every ten
workers was unemployed.

“The Finance Minister may
consider unemployment a ‘local’
problem,” Mr. MacDonald said.
“Most people call it a national
problem, which requires direct
action without further delay. The
unemployed want work. Mr. Ab-
bott has ignored them.”

nor about the resulting decrease
in consumer purchasi :?
the CCL Seer:

said. “His view is that there is
just ‘more unemployment than
we had last year and more than
any of like to see” He also main-
tains that there is ‘a strong basis
for maintaining of increasing
consumer expenditures.’ Yet of-
ficial reports indicate that both
farm and labor income have de-
clined in recent months.”

More Unemployment

“The Finance Minister's state-
ment that the national produet in
1954 ‘will be at least equal to
1953 and probably higher’, sounds
a good deal more optimistic than
it really is,” said Mr. MacDonald.
“Qur population and our working
foree will certainly be higher,
and productivity per man will be
greater,

“The same total product — or
just a little bigger—more produc-
tion per worker, and more peo-
ple available for work, add up
to just one result: more unem-
ployment. Yet Mr. Abbott admits
no need for ‘any greatly expand-
ed program’ of federal public
works, as he considers the unem-
ployment problem is ‘to a large

extent local in character’,

“The single theme of the Bud-
get speech was that the past few
years were ‘abnormally’ good,”
Mr. MacDonald noted. “The con-
clusion is inescapable that we
should now expect a ‘normal’
yate of expansion, ‘normal’ unem-
ployment.”

“This casual attitude towards
work opportunities recalls the |
speeches in the spring of 1930.
The period of the great depres-
sion followed.

See for yourself—today.

Blind Optimism

“There is no excuse for such
blind optimism now, Even Na-
tional Employment Service fi-
gures indicate that 14 percent of
the workers are unemployed.
They also prove that this is not
a ‘local’ problem; out of 111 em-

BANKING BY MAIL

The safe way to save
your money is to put it
in a bank. You can do
this best through any
of the branches of the
Canadian Bank of
Commerce in British
Columbia. Get some
Banking by Mail forms
before you leave town,
or write for a supply to
your nearest branch of
the Commerce.

THE onan BANK
OF COMMERCE

80 Branches in British Columbia