“Smee

e At the official opening of the Learning Centre were (I. to r.) then Local 1-3567 President Dave Tones (now National

Third V.P.), plant chairman Peter Hayes, first-aid attendant Cam Watson, an instructor from the Open Learning Insti-

tute, and Business Agent Lyle Olson.

Learning centre starts operations on Canfor mill site in New Westminster

ILW.A. CANADA Local 1-3567 mem- bers working at the Canadian Forest Products Panel and Fibre plant in New Westminster have been getting a leg up on their Brothers and Sisters in other plants since mid-November of last year when a new Learning Centre opened operations with an on-site facility.

An official opening ceremony, held

a week before Christmas gave the Lumberworker a chance to check things out and see how the whole pro- gram was put together. Included in those present were the sub-local com- mittee, officers from Local 1-3567 and then National Union President Gerry Stoney (now retired).

Sub-local plant chairman Peter Hayes said the learning centre actual- ly sprung out of a grievance that hap- pened a year and a half earlier when a 55 year old employee went for a post- ed job but could not qualify for it be- cause he lacked some math skills.

During the grievance procedure the union and the company looked at each other and realized that many workers required some upgrading and that an on-site learning centre would be a good way of achieving that.

After many more meetings and planning sessions, the new learning centre began operations as a result of cooperation between the company, the union, the Open Learning Agency of B.C., the Ministry of Labour, Skills, Education and Training and Forest Renewal B.C.

About $155,000 worth of funding for computer hardware, software and other equipment and renovations have gone into the centre, mostly paid for by FRBC funding through the min- istry.

“On the union side we realize that we have been in need of portable skills that will lead to greater job se- curity,” said Brother Hayes. “Our members have asked for access to up- grading educational skills which they can also use to get into apprenticeship programs.”

But the skills being taught are not only related to needs on the job.

The union (with a committee of Brother Hayes, Bernie Clement, Jerry Wilkes and Ernie Boudreau) and the company, jointly conducted a needs analysis amongst the hourly and salaried employees in the plant and found out that most workers wanted to receive some level of instruction on computers.

A basic computer course and com- puter application course were first of- fered, and by late December over 40 of 101 LW.A. members either had tak-

en or were registered to take one or more of the courses.

Brother Hayes said that it is impor- tant that the skills learned be portable. They can be used on and off the job and can be part of a work- er’s “portfolio” of skills should he/she retire or go elsewhere for employ- ment.

“There is going to be some job skills training done here but that is not the whole intent of the program,” added Hayes.

Workers can study up on such top- ics as personal accounting and retire- ment planning. Average age in the op- eration is 43, with a number of senior

employees nearly ready for or closing in on retirement.

“We view this as an ongoing thing and an opportunity for all employees to, on their own initiative, take up- grading and stay current,” said divi- sional personnel manager Boyd Stin- son. “People are willing to learn and we're in a situation now, in the mar- ketplace, where we (Canfor) have people taking upgrading courses to stay competitive as a company.”

Jim Marshall, Canfor’s divisional manager, told a small crowd at the of- ficial opening that “we have always been committed to training.”

“The results of this training exer-

cise are going to see this division through many future years,” he added.

He said: “I think that all the ees that work here are [ete of products and that the kind of things that we want to continue to do here.

The plant produces a wide range of value added products, from door pan- el for automobiles to yellow cedar ce- ment boards to agricultural products to a wide array of decorative paneling.

Then local President (now National Third Vice President) Dave Tones was on hand to commend all of those who worked hard on the partnership to make the program a reality.

“That partnership is very crucial for us to move into the future and into an area which is very near and dear to us...that’s jobs,” he said. “We want to be part of future job growth at the Canfor site, in terms of new ways to create jobs and be competitive out there in the value added sector.”

Jim Marshall told the Lumberwork- er that Canfor intends to have better skilled workers that are proficient in computer use, mathematics, business writing and reading.

He said that the workers share a lot of information now between shifts and in doing production reports.

The learning centre operates on an instructional basis from noon to 6 p.m., four days:a week. Classes last from 2 - 4 hours, before or after a shift. However those workers who want to use the computer equipment can get in to use the facilities up until midnight.

Local union Business Agent Lyle Ol- son said that “I didn’t think we would get this far” as the result of the griev- ance in 1995.

“We would like to see this kind of program in every operation in the fu- ture,” he added.

Sub-local union committee member Bernie Clement, said that upgrading will help senior employees go for posted jobs that require math and computer skills.

“This is the first time I have been happy, in a long time, about some- thing the company has done for the

workers,” added Brother Clement.

° On the green-chain during the last day of production for the sawmill

der Dhillon, and Surinder Sandhu.

Tolko Cedar

Continued from page fifteen

satisfied to acquired a steady supply of white wood in order to trade for cedar on the open market.

The last day of production for the sawmill portion of the plant was on February 21. The planer was schedule to run a further two shifts for two weeks and then onto one shift until the rough stock was used up.

Brother Parker points out that even if timber was available under the SBEP, it would be scattered all over the province.

The mill needed 300,000 cubic me- ters of cedar to operate shift year round. It needed 200,000 cubic meters which had to be sustained at a reason- able price and could acquire the rest on the open market.

Local union President Gary Kobayashi says that a mill closure at the Inlet cedar operation will cause a serious ripple effect at other wood

products plants in the Lower Main- land of the province.

Tolko supplied about 20% of the cedar lumber that is consumed in the remanufacturing sector.

“The mill closure will be felt in sev- eral reman operations, including those that employ some of our mem- bers,” says Brother Kobayashi. “We made it clear, to the government, that a mill closure of this sort will cause serious disruption to the economy.”

Kobayashi points out that other sawmills are feeling the pinch of de- clining timber supplies and a report released by the government late last year says that up to 4000 jobs in the Vancouver Forest Region, which en- compasses most of the coast from the Queen Charlotte Islands to the Fraser Valley, may be at risk if fears that the annual allowable cut for the region may come true.

The report, says that the combined effects of the Forest Practices Code, the Protected Areas Strategy and the Timber Supply Review, may cause a

were (1. to r.) Harmit Sandhar, Bhagan Sall, Ravin-

loss of up to 2.8 million cubic meters from the region.

Severance pay will be paid out to employees after March 27. The com- pany wants to sell off equipment quickly to get maximum value from it.

During the last months of operation there was no significant maintenance work carried out at the mill. It is esti- mated that there would be about $500,000 worth of work required to get the mill running again.

Brother Noyes says the workers are accessing FRBC funding under the “7:20 rule.”

That's $7,000 in funding for tuition fees and up to $20,000 in income as- sistance which is now being adminis- tered through a FRBC funded Worker Transition Centre in the Local 1-217 building in Vancouver.

The local union approached the company again prior to the final clo- sure on March 27 to take another try at getting timber. Tolko refused the offer, saying closure was inevitable.

——EE

16/LUMBERWORKER/APRIL, 1997