Editorial At this time, individual members of the IWA have the opportunity to take a direct and influential part in shaping the policy of the Union for the next year. Local Unions are now engaged in electing de- legates to attend the Twenty-fifth Annual Regional Convention and discussing resolutions’on various as- pects of the Union’s activities. When the delegates assemble in September, they will have the responsi- bility of expressing the will of the membership on matters affecting the future welfare of the Union. This calls for clear thinking by every member. Despite crises which threatened to weaken the strength of the Union it has grown in strength and vitality. It functions as a powerful instrument to protect wages and working conditions in the lumber industry. This has resulted from the determination of delegates attending succeeding conventions to base their decisions on the good of the whole union. Dif- ferences of opinion have invariably been settled by majority rule. Unity of purpose has been the key- note of convention deliberations. The same spirit may be expected to animate the next assembly. Negotiations Reports on this year’s negotiations will undoubted- ly bring negotiating policy under discussion. Past issues have been settled by membership decision. In each instance, the Policy Committee correctly gauged membership opinion and was upheld. The all-impor- tant consideration is future negotiating policy. The present two-year contracts give the Union time to mobilize its strength for the next test. Strike action, or its threat, remains as an import- ant weapon in the Union’s arsenal. Nevertheless, a union as large as the IWA cannot always rely on frequent strikes, or threats of strikes to reach satis- factory agreements with the employers. The econ- _omics and psychology of a strike situation cannot be ignored. When a union talks strike, it must be able to deliver a solid strike vote. Changing conditions in the industrial world demand consideration of other means as well. Mere blustering is not enough. Sometimes, a union may win a battle and lose the war. The IWA has been steadily winning the war, for over the years the IWA has been scoring im- portant improvements in contracts which, in all re- spects, are now second to none. Political Aims ‘Other basic problems now require consideration by the members of the Union as they prepare for the convention. The Union’s collective bargaining has been shack- led by various forms of government intervention made possible by anti-labour legislation. Only effect- ive political action will remove these shackles. The IWA gained in political influence in this province, by reason of its participation in the recent federal elec- tion. The basis has been laid for still greater in- fluence when a provincial election is called. This op- portunity must not be lost. The present policy can be re-inforced. Publication date of the next issue of the WESTERN CANADIAN LUMBER WORKER is August 2nd, Deadline for ad copy is July 27th, and for news copy July 26th. PUBLISHED TWICE MONTHLY ON THE FIRST AND THIRD THURSDAYS BY International Woodworkers of America (AFL-CIO-CLC) Regional Council No. 1 REGIONAL OFFICERS: President ... wane Jick Moore rete Eee ue Robie OSs Ist Vice-President .. Jack MacKenzie _ Jack Holst Fred Fieber Joe Madden Jack Holst 2nd Vice-President . 3rd Vice-President —.......-. Secretary Treas rr er see inesntnent enero International Board Members ..... ....... Address all communications to FRED FIEBER, Secretary-Treasurer 2859 Commercial Drive, Vancouver, B.C. TR 4-5261 -2 Subscription Rates ..............$2.00 per annum Advertising Representative .......G. A. Spencer Authorized as Second Class Mail, Post Office Dept., Ottawa, and for Payment of Postage in Cash. 27.500 COPIES PRINTED IN THIS ISSUE Our Convention The Union will undoubtedly consider new forms of organized activity. Organizing the unorganized is always a problem. The problem of educating the or- ganized is a greater problem. The march of time has replaced experienced members with less experienced members. Many have entered the Union with little appreciation of the struggles which have won them benefits, usually regarded by them as commonplace. An organizing program, combined with an education- al program is an ever-present requirement to achieve solidarity of union action. Critics of trade unionism claim that “business” un- ionism has taken the place of “social” unionism. The IWA, like other unions, finds that an increasing num- ber of its members are content to leave the adminis- tration of union affairs to the professionals. The con- vention will find good reason to approve a program which will capture the active interest of members likely to be indifferent. Automation The problems presented by the trend toward auto- mation are urgent. Mechanization in the logging section of the industry is responsible for the disap- pearance of whole categories of workers. In the saw- mills and plywood plants, automatic processes are working havoc with the crews. With all these changes, production is being speeded up beyond the point of safety. This faces the delegates with two problems. One is the policing of the contract to safeguard working conditions. The other is to devise a program which will either prevent or provide for the displacement of workers by mechanization or automation. The IWA carries the responsibility of spearhead- ing public action that will compel employers and gov- ernments to deal in a more satisfactory manner with the social consequences of technological change. TWO CHAMPIONS GET TOGETHER. Axe champion Jim Rope of Australia, left, and world champion tree climber Danny Sailor pose for their picture during the Squamish Loggers’ Sports Day. - Local 1-71, IWA, in the Terrace, Prince Rupert and Queen Charlotte areas. From Page 1 “Revision” The decision was made to proceed first with revision, as required, in the logging section of the industry, because of radical changes in job conditions caused by the introduc- tion of new equipment. Already a number of the larger operations have been inspected, and data accumulated in consultation with crew members as well as super- visory staff. Sawmills Next The Committee anticipates that in the near future it will commence with work of revision in sawmills and other sections of the industry. Revolutionary changes in logging methods in recent years have created new jobs and abolished old jobs, the IWA committee members report. Danny Wows Em Loggers owe it to Danny Sailor, former IWA job steward, that he has, in a spectacular manner, dur- ing recent loggers’ sports in the Pacific Northwest brought public attention to skills now threatened by the introduction of the steel spar and windrow machine. His daring feats always win the admira- tion of his fellow-loggers, who can appreciate his gymnastics. Danny Sailor is the B.C. logger who at times dances the Charleston on the top of a towering 90-foot tree. At other times he merely stands on his head. Both are among the highlights of the performance put on by the 30- year-old Danny, when he made his third appearance at the Pacific National Exhibition in 1956 with his displays, Danny combines color and cavort- ing with the skills he has learned as a high rigger—one of the toughest and trickiest jobs in the logging in- dustry. Today he is as well known at fairs and exhibitions up and down the Pacific coast as he is in the forests of northern B.C. 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