— Pacific | TRIBU Yol 1 No. 30 <> = Five Cents Vancouver, British Columbia, Friday September 6, 1946 : Formerly PACIFIC ADVOCATE - Irades Council scores AFL disruption attempt The firm stand taken by Perey Bengough, president -of the Trades and Labor Congress of Canada, in. maintaining the right of the Congress as an autonomous body to determine its Own attitude towards locals of the International Associa- tion of Machinists, was vigorously upheld by delegates to Vancouver Trades and Labor Council this week. A motion introduced by the council executive proposed only that William Green, president of the American Federation of Ia- bor, be urged to approach the TAM in an effort to bring. that erganization back into the AFI, from which it was expelled earlier this year. Delegates pressing for a Stronger stand wen endorsation of a resolution favoring reten- tion of the TAM within the Congress, to which AFI unions “supportins the actions of Grades and Uabor Congress President Percy Bengough against the dictatorial attitude of the executive of the AFL,” which is demanding expulsion of TAM lecals in Canada. (Continued on Page 8) See AFL DISRUPTION Not so innecent LONDON.—HField Marshal Vis- count Montgomery’s Canadian tour is directly linked to joint Ganadian-American military prep- arations in the Canadian Arctic in a broadcast over Moscow Radio recorded here. “Canadian papers have com- mented that in the light of Mont- Zomery’s speeches it is obvious Canada is taleing serious meas- ures in these areas lying oppos- ite her ‘northern neighbor,’ but it will be difficult to convince this neighbor that these measures are innocent and hence it must Surprise no one if that neighbor takes counter - measures,” the broadcast stated. BC ELECTRIC - BLUE LINE DEA BARES , UGE TRANSIT GRAB The widely advertised postwar plans of the British Columbia Railway Com- pany to give the public a new deal in transportation this week took on a new and different meaning with the the BCER. As the Pacific quired Moorhouse Stages, interurbans, buses and cabs, the great transit monopoly, Tribune is pursuing a gigantic scheme purchase of the Blue, Line Bus C@mpany by warned a few weeks ago when the BCER ac- which already operates streetcars, to bring all transportation in the Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island under its control. And it has already gone a long way towards succeeding in this scheme because responsible government bodies are supporting | and assisting; it. 's @ The Coalition government, elected on a pledge to bring pow- er resources, and those held by the BCER, under provincial control, has betrayed that pledge by leaving BCER in- terests’ untouched in its limited public ownership plan. e Vancouver’s - City Council has rejected all pro- posals for taking over the BCHR transportation system and for weeks past has been engaged in secret negotiations with the BCER for an exclusive 20-year fran- chise. @ North Vancouver City Coun- cil, headed by Jack Loutet, has openly espoused the BCER’s de- mand for an exclusive franchise and is urging the people to vote for it “in the plebiscite on September 11. @ Only in Burnaby, where LPP Councillor Harry Ball has been conducting a vigorous campaign for a municipal bus system and where the council] has been evenly divided on the issue of a. fran- chise, has the BCER met any opposition. in the meantime, the BCER has been quietly acquiring the holdings of its smaller competi- ters, Micorhouse Stages operating: out of New Westminster’ in the Hraser Valley, Neville Transpor- tation in Burnaby and this’ week, the Blue Line Bus Company in the Greater Victoria area. An indication of the behind-the- Scenes deals, with the vast prof- its to be derived by a super- transportation monopoly as the stakes, in which the BCER has been involved was given in the announcement that the BCER had bought out the Blue Line. The announcement stated that: negotiations for the purchase had been proceeding for some months. Over this same period the Blue Line has been vying with the (Continued on Page 8) See TRANSIT GRAB Labor rallies behind defence of Province pickets facing trial @rades Council President Birt Showler announced this week that $1,345 has been, donated by API unions towards the defense of Province sympathy pickets facing unlaw- ful assembly charges at the fall assizes which open September 9. One thousand dollars of this sum came irom Showler’s own organization, the Teamsters’ Joint Council. The Trades Council head was Sharply critical of those local Wmions which have so far made mo contributions to the defence. Meanwhile an undisclosed _ amount has been contributed by ©€@i, unions to the Vancouver La- bor Council defence fund. Majority of the men accused are members of ABT, and CCL unions Which joined in sympathy picket- ing of the Province to back the ifU fight. Maximum sentence pos- Sible is one year at hard labor. @he accused are Garry Cul- hane, George Taylor, Jack Roch andel, Frank Izzard, Jeremiah Lamb, Rebert Daniels, Leslie Mc- Crae, Ralph Hamilton, Tom Sie- bert, Wilfred Friesen, Leslie Borden and Matthew Furness. All are out on bail. The powerful B.C. HPederation ef Tabor, representing all CCL unions in B.C. has demanded of Attorney - General Wismer the dropping of the charges on grounds they constitute a direct attack on labor’s right to picket. Other sections of the labor move- ment, including the MTabor-Pro- gressive Party, have joined in this demand. particularly. INon-Partisan These American workers, members of the Food, Tobacco, Agricultural and Allied Workers (CIO) are participat- ing with other CiO and AFL unions to register against inflation. “Take time off to register” is a good motto for all workers, who desire to see the monopolists and their politicians voted out of office in coming elections. metal mines. The committee’s report stated that “the working week of six shifts of eight hours is at present the only practical one in the min- ing industry and we recommend that Section 28 of the Metallifer— ous Mines Regulation Act be amended as provided in sub-sec- tion 3 to make it lawful for any person to be employed for 48 hours in any week in or about any mine, quarry or ene ares tea works.” : : Trade union leader dubious of new Indian ‘freedom’ and gov’t. Peace cannot come to India while Britain retains the right to arbitrary veto proposals of the government now being formed. This is the confirmed opinion of Fazel Qurban, vice-president of the All-India Railwaymen’s Federation and president, Punjab Trade Union Committee, now visiting Vancouver. In his own union of railway- men, 22,000 workers of the South India railway are out on strike for a decent wage. Many railway officials, as well as 1,500 station masters are participating im this strike. The average wage of an Indian rail worker is under $9.00 per month. The walkout may touch eff a nation-wide strike, involving 800,000 workers. Despite the fact that India is supposed to be get- ting her “Independence,” the Governor of Madras has warned that “breaches of the peace would be severely dealt with”! and that he himself would see, to it that trains run. In an interview with the Pacific Tribune Quarban said he did not believe the coming government can be beneficial to the toiling (Continued on Page 8) : See INDIA Mine bosses seek to annul 44-hour week A flat statement that members of the Mine, Mill and Smelter Workers’ Union would refuse to work a 48-hour week was the response of Harvey Murphy, IUMMSW wes- tern regional director, to the report brought down this week by a special committee of Mines Department experts that the 44-hour week was not practical for British Columbia Murphy charged that the report was calculated to bolster the de— mand for a special amendment to the act advanced at the last ses- sion of the legislature by E. CG. Gar- son, then minister of mines. He de— clared that the proposal for a 48- hour week was “in direct violation of the promises made to the min- ers and the government-labor com- mittee on which Carson voted for the 44-hour week as it has now become law under the Hours of Work Act.” As proof of the justice of his union’s demands for better wages, hours and working condition, Mur- phy, who returned this week from a tour of struck mines in Cariboo and Bridge River, cited the in- Stance of Bralorne. Of the crew employed underground in 1933, he said, 20 men had died of Silicosis, 30 others had been Sranted full or part pensions and could no long- er work underground and only two men were still employed in under- ground work. There is still no indication that a settlement of the strike, now ending its second month, is in sight.