Page Two
THE FISHERMAN
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YOUR OWN BUSINESS
News, Views and Reviews of the Cooperative and Credit Union Movement
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Survey Shows Steady Growth Of Credit Unions In Canada
A net increase of 293 credit unions in Canada during 1943 is reported by The Bridge, official publication of the Credit Union National Association, on the basis of returns to a comprehensive questionnaire it sent out to all provinces.
April 18, 1944
Working Together
By G. T. GREENWELL (Extension Department, University of British Columbia)
The Cooperative Movement and Reconstruction
As people look forward into the postwar period, there is an ever-growing hope that it will be possible to re-arrange our economy in such a way as to avoid depression, unrest and exaggerated inequalities for a considerable period immediately following the conclusion of the peace. This optimistic outlook emanating from the meetings of the allied leaders at Moscow and Teheran, Cairo and Casablanca, has removed much of the black doubt and despair with which large sections of the people anticipated the period following the war's end. There are still questions left unanswered, there are still possibilities that all may not be rosy, but the elements do exist to overcome most of the problems facing us. These elements are contained in the desire of progressive peoples in all classes, of all political complexion, to come together to discuss ways and means of guaranteeing full-employment, social improvement, and the democratic building of a better Canada after the war.
Specifically the problem seems to be one of full employment. Given this condition, most of the other elements necessary in a peaceful postwar Canada, immediately fall into place. The objective then of all groups in our society should be to maintain full employment. The opinion expressed by many is that full employment cannot be continued, that with technological advances in the means of production over the past four years, full employment would in a short period flood the world with such a tremendous amount of consumers' goods, that markets for them could not possibly be maintained.
There is no proof that the world has even yet been able to produce beyond its combined consuming powers. We know that there will be immediately after the war, and for years to come, a demand for not only consumers' goods, but for machinery, housing, etc., in the devastated regions of Europe and Asia. There is in our country a great demand for improved housing, public works and social services. The task of supplying these goods offers a market for the five or ten years immediately following the war, without considering the possibility of increasing consumer demand within our own country. Merely to put the world back in the physical condition of 1939 is a gigantic task.
It is obvious that while the question of profit is bound to receive some consideration in determining our productive efforts in the postwar period that the securing of profit cannot be the only guide as to where our effort is going to de directed. Financial leaders in our country have stated that it may be necessary to make large outright gifts to some of the devastated areas to rebuild their economy, or at any event to provide goods on long term credit. They have further stated that such exchange of goods can best be made between an international body such as the UNRRA and the respective governments, implying the continuance of a measure of government control.
The cooperative movement should be the first to recognize the wisdom of such a course. The necessity of supplying the goods, the peaceful transition from a wartime to a peacetime economy inherent in the condition of full employment, deserves greater consideration than the immediate securing of profits. Profits can continue and must not necessarily be eliminated to reach this objective. But in some instances, the profit motive must play a secondary part as the determining factor.
Not only in the supplying of goods, but in their distribution, the cooperatives have a tremendous role to play. It has been suggested in briefs to UNNRRA that the government of occupied countries utilize existent cooperative outlets to assist in the. distribution of goods and relief to the peoples of these countries after the war. The reasons given are sound. The philosophy of cooperation, in its humanitarian aspects, adds to pure business instincts the leaven required to develop commercial practices demanded by the job of reconstruction and rehabilitation facing the world. But it would be wrong for the cooperative movement, or any one group in our society, to feel that they represent the only answer to our immediate problem. The cooperative movement should be prepared to sit down with representatives of labor, of government and of private business to discuss the best solution to our difficulties, whenever such groups show a desire to do so.
Twenty-four new credit unions were established during the year in British Columbia and according to the statistical analysis this province shows the greatest rate of increase in the dominion since 1939, jumping from five credit unions on December 31, 1939, to
Bella Coola Co-op Store Launched
Editor, The Fisherman: I appreciate very much the weekly page in the paper on the cooperative movement. I notice that in the March 14 issue of the paper Mr. Greenwell, in his article, mentions the consumer's store in Bella Coola, and I can verify the statement that -we are a full-fledged store right at the start. It looked rather gloomy the day before the store was to open for co-op business. We had been taking stock on Monday- and were going to fix everything up on Tuesday and open the store Wednesday morning to the public. However, when I got there on Tuesday morning, I was informed by our secretary that we were $1,100 short to swing the deal. You see the stock had been estimated at $4,000, but in checking it over it had amounted to over $5,080. The stock had to be paid for in cash and we were short $1,100. However, Mr. Joe Saunders, one of the Natives on the Board went out in the village, and in a few hours he was back with $700 dollars for share capital. Then Mr. Saunders himself loaned us enough money to pay Mr. Christensen as per agreement. The store has done good business for the first week, and on the 31st of March the board are meeting with the store staff to find out how things are running. We have two clerks and a manager on our staff. I am glad to see that the B.C. Cooperative union has been launched. I hope it gets good support as it no doubt will be a factor in promoting more cooperatives in B.C.
JOHN HARESTEAD. Bella Coola, B.C.
a total of 108 at the end of 1943.
Among the reasons given by credit union leaders for the remarkable growth of the movement are the following:
V The movement in Canada is relatively young. Except for the caisses populaires groups in Quebec credit union growth in Canada is just beginning, while it may be on the first plateau of its development in the United States.
2. The, Canadian supervisory authorities are remarkably co-operative and participate most actively in the promotion of new credit unions.
3. There is a great surge of interest in cooperative activities in general. Credit unions have an important part in this wave of popular interest in cooperative enterprise.
The following table shows the number of credit unions reported in each province in 1939, 1942 and 1943.
Total on December 31 Province 1939 1942 1943
British Columbia 5 84
Alberta ......... . 23 74
Saskatchewan
Manitoba .......
Ontario ___________
Quebec:
credit unions 3
caisses populaires 470
Nova Scotia ____________ 182
New Brunswick _ 119 Prince Ed. Isl. .. 44 Total ......._________ 923
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Probably you didn't move very often, but each time you did, the Post Office gave redirectory service. And if you wili think about that for a moment, you will begin to see what a stupendous task confronts the Canadian Postal Corps in handling the military mails, when thousands of men are being moved almost daily!
Yet, in spite of the need of tracing men from reinforcement units to their locations on fighting fronts ... in spite of the need of tracing them through hospitalization ... or while on leave . . . when their unit is moved ... in spite of delays in air mail service caused by adverse flying conditions ... of delays in surface transportation caused by enemy action ... in spite of every war hazard you can think of . . . your Post Office and the Canadian Postal Corps delivered 31,500,000 letters to men overseas in 1943!
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