me FROM PAGE 1

GIWA

not be left destitute when he died.

Company officials assured him that his policy was in order and that all he had to do was to continue to submit his monthly premiums. Un- fortunately, this information was decidedly wrong.

NOT INSURED

When Mrs. Matkovich sub- mitted the policy for payment on the death of her husband who died February 15, 1965, she was informed by the in- surance company that because her husband had failed to ex- ercise the policy’s conversion privilege, he was “at the time of his death not insured by our company.”

This was a stunning blow to Mrs. Matkovich who was unaware of the conversion privilege. Her husband’s em- ployers also admitted they’ were ignorant of the policy’s terms. This information was available at the IWA office in Kelowna but like a number of other Union members Mr. Matkovich made the mistake of putting his trust in his em- ployer with disastrous results.

The policy’s conversion privilege stipulates that any- one insured under the plan who is 60 years of age or over —Mr. Matkovich was 63 — may within 31 days after in- surance stops, subsequent to termination of service, apply to the insurance company for any regular life,endowment or pension with insurance plan ordinarily issued by the com-

pany, for an amount not ex- ceeding $5,000.

POLICY TERMS

The converted policy may not include disability or double indemnity benefits. The insurance will be issued, effective at the end of the said 31-day period, without medi- cal examination at the premi- um rate applicable to his age and classification of risk at the time of conversion.

If the employee dies within the said 31-day period, the amount of life insurance for which the employee was last insured will nevertheless be paid,

What this means in lay- man’s language is that any employee of the plan, age 60 or over, who quits work for any reason and wishes his life jmsurance coverage to con- tinue, must within 31 days of leaving the job apply to the insurance company for a new policy. s«+Tf, as in the ease of Mr. Matkovich, an employee age

THE WESTERN CANADIAN LUMBER WORKER

“WIDOW"

60 or over takes ill and can- not return to work, his life insurance policy will be paid provided he dies before his weekly indemnity benefits are exhausted or within 31 days of receiving his last indemnity cheque.

When payment of her hus- band’s policy was rejected, Mrs. Matkovich appealed to the Kelowna Local Union offi- cers for help. Bill Schumaker immediately contacted the Health and Welfare Plan’s ad- ministrators — William M. Mercer Ltd. — giving full de- tails of the case.

Mercer's informed him that

legally, the insurance com-

pany had every right to refuse .

payment. They stated that the contract wordage of the policy was specific and ignorance was no excuse or justification for payment in the eyes of the law. .

Mercer's stated, however, that morally the claim was a good one and every attempt should be made to see that it

was paid. They sent a letter to the imsurance company a

short time later which read in part:

LETTER

“There is no doubt in our minds that Mr. Matkovich, his beneficiary, and his employers all thought that they had fol- lowed the correct procedure and had thus ensured Mr. Matkovich’s ‘continuation of coverage’.

“The purpose of this letter is to acquaint you with the Situation and to request your advice as to whether there is any possibility that your com- pany is prepared to consider allowing this claim just as if the correct procedures had been adhered to and the con- version privilege exercised.”

The insurance company re- plied that under the terms of the contract this request was impossible unless directly or-

derer by the Trustees of the Plan.

Schumaker then ap- proached the Plan’s Trustees — comprised of two from the Union and two from the em-

ployers — with the request that an ex gratia payment be made to Mrs. Matkovich (An eX gratia payment is one made generally where the legality of the issue is not involved and payment is made on pure- ly compassionate grounds). The Union Trustees gave their wholehearted approval to the request but unfortu- nately, one of the employer Trustees refused on the grounds that such a payment would set a precedent in the

ESQUIRE MEN’S WEAR (Graham Mowatt)

Complete Stock of Work and Dress Clothing “THE STORE WITH THE POPULAR BRANDS”

HANEY

BRITISH COLUMBIA

future. This defeated the pro- posal because under the Plan’s terms of trust, all four Trustees must be in complete accord before any action can be taken by them.

By this time more than a year had passed since the death of Mr. Matkovich and his widow, no nearer to col- lecting her husband’s insur- ance money, was now forced to go out to work to make ends meet.

Schumaker still refused to give up the case. He constant- ly hounded the insurance company, the Plan’s admini- strators, the Trustees, the IWA Regional officers and employers, in a desperate ef- fort to solve the problem.

Finally, at a top level meet- ing between the Union and Employers in late September, an agreement was worked out which authorized an ex gratia payment of $5,000 to Mrs. Matkovich.

While Bill Schumaker was not in attendance at this meet- ing, there is no doubt whatso- ever that his fight on her be- half motivated the decision to pay Mrs. Matkovich the $5,000.

And there is little doubt that had he not fought so valiantly on her behalf, the claim would have never been paid.

1st Issue November, 1966

ll

\AHALEA/

I'M SURE GLAD TO GET AWAY FOR A COUPLE OF DAYS FROM THEM DANGED SIDE HILLS!

some are made

This one, the famous PARIS “Light Cruiser”, has been made for over

half a century by the same family of craftsmen

right in B.C.

PIERRE PARIS & SONS

31 West Hastings Street Vancouver 3, B.C.

nwork in Craftsmanship since 1907