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THE FISHERMAN
March 7, 1958
THE FISHERMAN
10 cents per copy      —     $3.50 per year Published every Friday except the last Friday of each month by   The   Fisherman   Publishing   Society,   }01 J?owell Street, GEORGE NORTH, Editor       Vancouver 4, B.C.       Phone: MU. 3-1829
Authorised as Second-Class Mail by Post Office Department, Ottawa
LET PROFITS GO DOWN
Higher Wages Will Lift Shadows Cast by 'Sun7
THE Vancouver Sun, one of British Columbia's major business enterprises, has assumed the rather thin mantle of "impartiality" in its editorial «of March 1 in which it calls for a halt to wage increases. Stripped of doubletalk, the editorial argues ("Higher Wages Can Shrink Payrolls") that if wages go up, there will be more unemployment.
The fact that The Sun is now in conciliation w.ith its non-mechanical staff' could have nothing to do with its editorial sentiments. That would carry the unfair implication that newspaper publishing by private business is carried on to make money. Away with such heretical sentiments.
What are the facts of the current economic situation? Canada has more than 800,000 unemployed; the United States approaching five million. .
"We should bear in mind that the present (unemployment) situation is by no means common to British Columbia alone," says George Bishop, research supervisor of the bureau of economics and statistics, department of industrial development, trade and commerce.
He goes on to say in a paper presented to the B.C. Natural Resources Conference, "I don't believe it is necessary to demonstrate that the present state of the U.S. economy is the primary factor affecting the Canadian and B.C. business scene."
Morden La?arus in a recent article in the UAW Guardian says succinctly, ". . . our economy is so tied in with the progress of the United States that every time a cool, breeze' is wafted from south of the border, Canada sneezes ominously."
Thus to a certain extent, our recession is second-hand, largely because we have such a close economic tie-in with the United States and have failed to develop secondary industry and markets in other parts of the world, notably China.
Just how "independent" Canada really is can be/ seen in the fact that 60 percent of our industrial machine and a high percentage of our raw materials are owned by foreign investors. And these investors not only call the shots when it comes to closing down a plant (Britannia Mines for example) but they siphon off huge amounts of our wealth in the form of profits.
Economists point to these and such factors as "tight money" with its resulting restriction on industrial expansion as chief factors in creating the present unemployment crisis.
But there is one further factor which we can well understand , The Sun minimising. In the words of Bishop, "The important thing is that consumer demand, for varipus reasons, is not as keen now as it has been in recent years."
And that understatement is the crucial factor in the whole situation: goods are piling up and payrolls are being shrunk because people haven't got the money to buy the fruits of their labor.
In his year-end review, Canadian minister of trade Gordon Churchill said, "In the market situation ahead, consumer demand will be an important sustaining influence." That means the unemployed must be put to work and working people must be given greater purchasing power through increased incomes, even though Mr. Churchill may not have intended this as a conclusion from his remarks.
^ Wages have been the little, in some cases very distantly related cousiri of profits. Wp maintain and surely The Sun must agree, that exorbitant profits have been a very big factor in the existing unemployment problem.
With facts and figures to bolster the'charge, United Steelworkers Union assistant research director Harry WaiSglas has shown that "Over the past two years, the percentage increase in corporate profits after taxes has been almost eight times as great as the increase in average hourly "earnings."
Specifically, Waisglas points out, corporation profits after taxes in 1954-55 wert up 34.6 percent while average hourly earnings rose a mere two percent. The following year it was profits up 20 percent and wages up five percent.
Thus it has been a case of skyrocketing profits with wages making a feeble effort to get within shouting distance, and now a recession that looks much like a depression with an estimated 12 percent of the Canadian working force unemployed.
G. Ronald Knight of the B.C. department of industrial development, trade, and commerce, in his paper to the B.C. Resources Conference makes the interesting point that during the period 1950 to 1956, rate of wage increase in B.C. "was slightly lower than the Canadian average, contrary to popular belief. Alberta with a rise of 50 percent in hourly rates led all the provinces." Can The Sun tell us if B.C. being' below the national average is the cause of the economic slump in this part of Canada? Mr. Knight adds that while ". . . hourly rates in British Columbia are the highest in Canada ... at the same time living costs are also probably the highest." And we might add that a survey by his department reveals that 25 percent of the industries contacted expect to raise their prices even higher this year while 57 percent plan to remain at last year's levels.
Dr. Stuart Jamieson this week stated in reference to British CoJUirnbia that ". . . wage increases in themselves have not been so large as to scare away investment capital or decrease the sale of our exports, or cause unemployment ..."
It is .our ^opinion that in addition to the job-creating program our governments must undertake in public works, hospitals and the like, at the expense of war expenditure mainly, in addition to opening up such markets as China, loosening money, and lowering taxation on moderate incomes, the pay packet of the worker must put on weight.
Profits can stand plenty of pruning yet. B.C. Federation of Labor secretary George Home has put it this way: "For years industry has built up tremendous reserve funds. Today they can afford to delve into these funds and pay it out in wages to avoid a depression even if it means taking a loss for a while."
The AFL-CIO has said: "We must raise the level of consumer buying power through vigorous collective bargaining by winning v higher wages and increased income."
Certainly the bugaboo of higher productivity is not the answer or the steel industry would be going full blast since labor's share in the steel sales dollar has shown a steady decline from 30 cents in 1945 to 24 cents in 1958.
Nor ire lower wages a solution. If that were the answer, the depression t>f 1929 would have been short-lived since'wage cuts and speedup were the order of the day and still the depression kept getting worse. Only a war lifted us out of that mess.
This time if we are to climb back on our feet, we must in addition to all the other essential measures, boost the income of the working people even at the expense of profits. It is the worker's dollar which buys cars, refrigerators, stoves, food, clothing, and the other goods which must be bought to keep industry operating and the economy in shape. ,
For that reason, any capitulation to The Sun's line which is fully endorsed by business in general, will lead us further into the hole into which high profits, lack of planning in public works spending, stupid trade policies, and economic peonage to the United States have carried us.
Market Basket Still Empty
Picketing of Market Basket Stores in Vancouver was still continuing at presstime and only new development during the past two weeks has been postponement of decision by the Labor Relations Board on a Company application to decertify the Union.
' The Union involved. Retail Food and Drug Clerks Union Local 1518 contested the company application for decertification since its members are in a majority in Ihe five Market Basket Stores in Vancouver. Retail clerks have been seeking a standard agreement with the Company.
The Union last week received a letter from the provincial department of labor stating that it had been considered advisable to postpone consideration of the Company application to cancel the certification until its first meeting after Ihe end of May.
Meanwhile, the Union information picket is continuing on the, Stores, and Union men and their wives are carefully avoiding the picket line. General speaking, the Market Basket is empty.
Look Who's Trying to be the Referee
"Now let's have a nice Centennial bout . . . don't hurt my boy dive ... it will please the shareho - - - the public, that is."
. and take a
FISH AND SHIPS
WE DON'T KNOW just what it means as far as prospects for the Adams River runs are concerned but Buck Suzuki reports the first sockeye of the season has been taken on the Fraser River. Yosh Oikawa, a member of Sunbury Local, caught a three pound sockeye while fishing off Sunbury last week. That makes this fellow about four months early.
The halibut boat Kodiak, captain Edgar Arnet, is installing a new Decca 212 marine radar. Frederick Goertz, agents for this popular equipment, report that similar installations are being made on the C.G.S. Parry for the Canadian Hydrographic Service and for two new RCMP vessels now under construction. A machine is also going on the Nitinat Chief for Island Tug and Barge.
Steveston fishermen will be interested to hear that Ekolite Limited of Vancouver has opened a new branch at 362 Moncton Street in Steveston. The new store will be under the direction of Lyall McLennan, well-known in the fishing fleet as an expert on electronic equipment and now sales manager for Ekolite. The store plans to carry a good stock of parts and paper, and will have on hand a general supply of electronic fishing aids. Lyall has been spending some time '^n the Steveston area of lite and invites the boys to pay him a visit.
I see Hugh Anderson who was packing for Wadhams last year has his boat the J.H. rigged up for trolling. Looks like Hugh is going to get an early crack at fishing this year.
, *    * *
Another boat changed hands. Drum seiner Shy Ann was bought by Hugh Gordon, formerly of Esperanza, He is changing over to trolling.
*    * *
Haakon Novik, well known halibut skipper, has bought the halibut-seiner Brooks Bay. Haakon, who was skipper on the B.C. Rover last year and six years on the Sea Ranger, tells me he figures on getting away on halibut between March 5 and 20 for the. Bering Sea.
Mr. and Mrs. Don Puska of Haney and Mr. and Mrs. Karl Vick of Vancouver have recently returned from a week's holiday in Mexico and southern California. I hear the folks got quite a sun tan on their trip.
Here's one for the dictionary— ROCOCO—that's the name Norm Haraldson is calling his new 38-foot troller now being built in Prince Rupert by Wahl Shipyard.
Nolan Lowe (Kanata Marine Ways) are now the distributors for Palmer Marine Gas Engines ranging from 22 to 250 h.p. They are also dealers for the Coalmine diesel engine.
Mot   Julius.   Pedersen from Prince Rupert.   Julius, who is owner of the troller Marlin says he may sell his boat andr-try' gillnctting for a change.
Another Pedersen in the news. That's Bill Pedersen, the well-known Vancouver fisherman just out of Pearson Hospital. Bill dropped into the office to say hello and let the boys know he is back in circulation again.
Einar Gulbransen of the Annie-ville Welding and Machine Shop
tells me he will be leaving this coming May for a six months trip to Norway and other parts of Europe.
Kamachi Boatyards of the same street have a 36-foot gillnetter underway. Nelson Brothers have three boats under construction, one a 40-foot combination gill-netter-draggcr and two 36-foot gillnctters.
Over Annicville way, O. P. Stokkeland Boatyards have just finished a now stern for Clifford Bentzen's gillnetter Laddie. Ves-tad Boatworks have two 34-foot round   stcru,   gillnettei'3 uuder
construction and Pete Sather is building a 34-foot gillnetter, while up Haney way, Albion Boatyard is putting the finishing touches on two 37-foot gillnet-ters. In Sunbury Deltaga Shipyard is completing a 38 -foot gillnetter.
There seems to be a little activity among^ the shipyards on the Fraser River. Sather's Boatyard of Jardine Street, New Westminster, have two 40-footers under construction. One a troller, the other a collector.
* * *
I see Bob Kelly's steel vessel Pacific Queen up for copperpaint and general overhaul. Kelly is going out oh the fur seal hunt for the Pacific Biological Station of Nanaimo and he will be accompanied by some of the officials from the Station on the trip.
* * *
Dragger Sleep Robber was in this week with 45,000 pounds of drag fish. Skipper-owner Fred Kohse tells us there was a big fleet between 20 or 30 boats, American and Canadian, fishing off Bonilla where he came from this trip.
* * - * •
White Swart was also in the previous week with 65,000 drag fish, skippered by Bill Wach-smuth.
* * *
Aleutian Queen was in with a fairly large trip which was sold in Bellingham, Washington.
ANNUAL MEETING
Gaff Credit Union
Gulf and Fraser Fishermen's Credit Union
FRIDAY, MARCH 21
7:30 P.M.
BLUE DANUBE HALL 1806 East Hastings St.
• Refreshments and Dance follow Business Meeting
Met Ray Prince of Victoria aboard his dragger yinetta Prince who, was having an overhaul job done on the engine. Ray tells me he will be leaving for crab fishing up Queen Charlotte Islands way for Nelson Brothers.
* * *
Met Pete Jensen of the White Hope at Campbell Avenue. Pete, who has been fishing prawns in Kingcome Inlet all winter, says he will be making a black cod trip now that the market for prawns has fallen. He figures to get one trip in before the season opens up on halibut in Area 2.
J. W. Swann Ltd., of West Georgia Street, is • exceptionally busy these days making gurdies for the trailers and hydraulic drives for power blocks. - *    * *
Richter Iverson who recently sold the Brooks Bay with his partner Knute Floe will continue as skipper on the Cape Russell where he has been the past 12 years while his ex-partner Knute will take out the seiner Midnight Sun.
* * *
George Howe, former owner of the drum seiner Wichmann which sank last year in Portland Inlet, Naas River, has himself a gillnetter. You folks up the Naas can look forward to seeing George this year.
Pulp Lads Will Help
Prince Rupert Pulp and Sulphite Workers have pledged support to members of the United Fishermen and Allied Workers Union "should ybur road prove as rough as ours."
In a message of appreciation to UFAWU northern representative Ray Gardiner, Local 708 president Angus Macphee states: "Please convey to the membership of the two Prince Rupert Locals the appreciation of Local 708 for their patience and generosity during our recent strike.
"Even more than the substantial financial support given us" in the matter of rent and light our strike committee appreciates the freedom which you allowed in the use of your offices and equipment. Without such cooperation it would have been impossible to conduct our activities during the strike.
"While our strike was settled with substantial contract gains, the monetary increases leave much to be desired. However, there is no evidence of defeatism in our ranks and in fact much has been learned during the course of the past three months.
"The most significant lesson to be drawn is that against such large combines no union can win a fight alone. It requires the active cooperation of a'l unions, particularly those in allied industries.
"We wish you success in your current negotiations and would assure you that our Local is more than willing to help in any way we can "should your road prove as rough as ours, and it must be admitted that there is every evidence that Canada's big business is preparing itself for a battle with the workers this year."
h-j o o
WAITER: "What's the matter with your meal, sir? Why are you crying?"
DINER: "It would make anybody cry to think that just because of this little bit of meat, a great big cow had to be killed!" ■   »     * *
Mother: "Didn't I tell you not to f?o out with perfect strangers?"
Daughter: "But, mother, he's far from perfect."
* * * TEACHER: "Which is more important, the sun or the moon?'
Billy: "The moon is, because it shines at night when it is dark outside. The sun shines only during the day when it's light anyway!"
MAN: (standing in middle of the street) "Officer, can you tell me how to get to the hospital?"
Traffic policeman: "Just stand
where you are."
* * •>
We TV critics are the only people who are dc-'nied access to what surely is this year's most cherished privilege: turning the damn set ofj.
—Jack Gould.
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