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On May 7th the workers of the
CM&S at Trail, through the med-
jum of their union, the I[UMM&S,
won an overall 1514c per hour, based
upon the take-home-pay rates dur-

ing the war years. They wrote the

40-hour week into their new agree-
ment and vacations with pay. In
the ancestral home of company-
unionism, the IUMM&:S has won
a victory which is a pattern for the
entire hard-rock mining industry
of western Canada. :

BY CHAS. SAUNDERS

F OR decades the City of Trail has been known as the

home—the mainstay of company unionism.

Center of

the Consolidated Mining and Smelting Empire which has
grown opulent and powerful exploiting the rich mineral
wealth of our province, its appearance stands in strange
contrast to the rich industry for which the city exists.

Mining towns have been de-
scribed by many writers. The
depressing effect of an environ-
ment strictly utilitarian, with no
thought for the amenities of life
-—the home just a place to gath-
er strength for the next shift.
These towns have been describ-
ed romantically by the idealist:
outposts of pioneers—the rugged
imdividualist, ete. They have
been described
in all of their
stark ugliness
by lsbor writ-
ers, and inevit-
ably, where the
union has be-
eome establish-
@d, there too
has struck the
Spark of civic
pride: the de-
sire to build a
place in which
a happy, heal-
t hy, cultural Chas. Saunders
life can replace existence for
toil Phe smelting city of Trail
has many of the charactertistics
of the pioneer mining town.

A fairly large city of 12,000
Population it has never grown

_Up. it gains little from its prox-

imity to the biggest non-ferrous
metal industzvy in the world.
The big shots live in Montreal
in established country homes
like the beautiful estate built
by the late S. G Blaylock near
Welson. The company has char-
itably, owt of sheer benevolence,
donated to various good causes.
it maintains a paternal attitude
—2 Kindly interest—but it in-
cerporated thé municipality of
Padanac to avoid direct re-
Sponsibility to the city.

LD BILL wrote a column re-
cently in which he described
his reaction to the
ehildren’s playground at the bot-
tom of the slag heap on the
‘Hill’ I stood with Old Bill
looking at that caricature that
serves to salve the conscience
ef the profit hungry barons who
haye dominated this town from
its inception. That playground
is symbolic. It reflects the old
way of things. Everywhere you
ean see evidences of such
‘burnt offerings’ And every-
where you are conscious of one
outstanding factor: the factor
that the union is going to play
a leading role in changing. That
is this. Up until now the city
has existed entirely for the
smelter. No thought or planning
has been given either in its
establishment or in the succeed-
ing years to the building of a
city for people to live in. Like
Topsy it ‘just grew up’—and in
this comparatively young city—
Site of the most prosperous in-
dustry in Canada, slum condi-
tions are already developing.
The city council is either in-
ept, lacking in imagination, to-
tally unable to tackle the job,
or else, like a lot of other or-
genizations in this town, afraid
to move against wishes of the
company.
Se

The outstanding victory of
local 480 of the International
Wnion of Mine, Mill and Smel-
ter Workers represents much
more than an economic advance
for the workers on the ‘Hill.’ It
means first of all that the
union is firmly established—that
ihe Jong upbill battle which
started back in the early days
ef 1918, when the Western Hed-

SATE US A

® feature Seciion

SEE 2.

@ ATOMIC
ENERGY

so-called —

Like a baronial castle of
medevial times, the huge smelter of the CM&S one
at Trail pours out its belching smoke and poisonous fumes upon the

city below.

Company Town To Union Town

An empire~ which has sucked enormous profits from the mineral and

human wealth of the nation, and given as little as possible in return. With the coming:
of the International Union of Mine, Mill and Smelter Workers, a new era is opening

for the people of Trail.

eration of Miners sought to es-
tablish organization in the min-
ing industry of this province,
has been won. The “Independ-
ent,’ company union can fold
its tent and depart. Its bank-
ruptey has been thoroughly ex-
posed over the last few months
that it is no longer a serious
factor and those misguided wor-
kers who were once its most
ardent supporters are now com-
ing inte the Ci@Q International
tc take their place in the gen-
uine trade union movement: :

The whole face of this com-
pany town is changins. The do-
mination of the company has
been broken. Labor and pro-
gressive groups are gaining
courage. Realization that the
workers can make gains from
the entrenched monopolists of
the metal industry, through col-
lective bargaining has awaken-
ed a desire to ‘do likewise.” De-
mands for organization are com-
ing into the local union office
from store clerks, waitresses,
taxi drivers and so on. Trail
is becoming union conscious—
it is on its way to becoming
@ union town—and with that
consciousness something deeper
is stirring. ‘i

®:

FEOPLE long ago started
. moving out of the city to
establish their homes. All around
the environs smail communities
have been established. There
were many reasons for this. Low
wages forbid the building in the
city and made the taxes pro-
bibitive to the average worker.
Some wanted to get away from
the depressing surroundings of
the company dominated town.
Moves are now being made to
incorporate Some of these com-
munities into the city. And with

the coming of the union and

the awakening of interest this
can be a good thing. Trail can
be a city second to none in
British Columbia. But it will
take the united effort of all
progressive citizens led by the
union. As Pat Conroy pointed
out in his speech at the victory
banguet, the union has a re
sponsibility to the community.
As the best organized, most
progressive grouping in town
they must take the lead.

The feeling of security the
union has brought is the first
step. The second must be the

election of people to civic of-
fice prepared to boldly and
courageously fight in the inter-
ests of the people.

The people of Trail should re-
fuse to tolerate the reactionary
role of its daily newspaper. That
Stumbling block in the path of
progress, ironically referred to

as the CMS News, technically ~

the Trail Times, can find
plenty of reasons why things
cannot be done, but has yet to
come forward, in the way a
newspaper should, editorially
championing progressive re-

~ forms in the city. Progressive

people of this city have long
felt the need for a community
center. Money has already been
collected for this purpose. But
the Trail Times does nothing
but lay a big wet editorial blan-
ket over the idea, warning of
the financial hazards. The com-
pany could finance a civic cen-
ter out of the increased price of
silver this year and never no-
tice it é

They should do it They should
hand it over as a slight re-
compense to the people of Trail
and set aside a yearly sum—
out of profits—for its upkeep,
and let the city have the. right
of unencumbered administration.

Already the union through its
Political Action Committee is
taking action on the vital hous-
ing: problem, new Veterans are

beginning to insist that the local
branch of the Canadian Legion
should function as a force for
progressive in the city.

ATi, needs renovating. What

is needed is a town planning
commission charged with the
responsibility of beautifying the
city. It can be done. it is a
big project It will need men
and women with vision and
courage to carry it through. The
people for the job are right here
in Trail. You will find them
in the Union, the Legion, fra-
ternal organizations, church or-
fanizations, all people interested
in civic welfare. Already they
are showing up in the demand
for a civic center—better hous-
ing and so on. They must be
brought together, their efforts
co-ordinated in a civic improve—
ment endeavor and there the
basis for carrying through such
planning can be laid.

Yes—the union is changing
Trail. Now it must accept its
responsibility to the full and
play a leading role in rallying:
citizens around a program to
make Trail one of the outstand-
ing communities in British Co-
lumbia—and that means Canada.

actio2.

tem of remunerative pay.

new contract.

40-hour week.

matter of severance pay.

towns.

Union Victory.

OQ May % the membership of Local 430, TUMMSW, voted
unanimous acceptance of the new wage and hours agree-
, ment negotiated between representatives oi the CMS and! the
2 TUMMSW. On May 9th the Kimberley local of the union took
The new agreement establishes for the first time a
definite wage scale in place of the old variable “bonus” sys-

The new agreement establishes an overall wage increase
of 15% cents per hour, based upon the take-home pay of the
> war years. Wunder the new agreement the base rate pay of
miners is $8.00 per shift, and $3.24 per hour for shaft miners.
Labor classifications 77¢ per hour; tradesmen $1.10 per hour, <4
with an additional 40c per day covering all classifications.

As labor becomes available the working week in the CMS
will be reduced to 40 hours within the time expiry of the $
A joint union-management committee has been
set up to work out the organization of the plant within a

4 The union won a week’s holiday with pay for all smelter <
workers with i to 5 years’ service, and two weels holiday
with pay for all workers with five years in CMS service. Q
A special committee is established to make proposals for
a contributory pensions scheme replacing the old pensions
system of the CMS. This committee will also deal with the

Under the new wage and hours coniraet with the CMS,
> the smelter workers of Trail and the hardrock miners of 2
Kimberley, through the medium of the TUMMSW have won
2 first place in Canada’s metaliferous mining and smelting in-
dustry. They have aiso won a victory for the respective com- ‘
munities in which they live and work. They have transformed
what was the stronghold of company unionism inte union

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