Vol. 39, No. 7
<*@*>2 March 29,1974
PTA scabs get new injunction
Union busting court decision clobbers UFAWU
Richard Morgan photos • Here (top) UFAWU shoreworker organizer Helen O'Shaughnessy talks to shop steward Lil Robson as she works on herring roe in Canfisco's home plant at the foot of Gore Avenue, to which the Cape Barrow (bottom) is delivering her load of herring.
Members of the Pacific Trollers Association emerged smiling from battle with the UFAWU arising court March 28 after a two-day from the union's declaration that PTA herring were "hot".
An interlocutory injunction granted in B.C. Supreme Court by Mr. Justice E. Davey Fulton forbids the union from inducing shoreworkers not to handle PTA fish and, in effect, has given a strikebreaking organization freedom to invade at will hard-won union jurisdictions covered by tendermen's agreements.
Union secretary-treasurer Jack Nichol was served March 26 with a notice of motion that the Pacific Trollers Association, Pacific Trollers Enterprises Ltd., Gabe Borjancic, Gary Bostrom, Ted Baird, Doug I. Larden, Jim Breckon, Brian W. Widsten, Reinhard Fishing Ltd., John L. McLeod, Al Brown, George T. Betts, Brian J. Raby, Gary W. Bennett, Bernie Bennett, William Wilson, Gordon R. Breckon, Darrell Larden, Gerald S. But-terfield, Allan Neaves, Ford McLeod, Thor Johnson, Samuel Larden Sr., Brian W. Budd, Stan Almas, J.V. Hynninen, Dave Swaluk, Sam Larden Jr., George W. Webb, Tom Linberg, Gary R. Steele, Lorne H. McKinnell, John Peterson, Gordon J. Evans, Steve S. Pierce, Larry Kent, John King, Elliot Cook, Desmond Morris, Robert McKenzie, Guy White and James Willott would seek the injunction.
PTA vessels Covenant, Manhattan 2, Diligence and Ocean Gold attempted March 23 and 24 to land herring at the Canadian Fishing Company's home plant and at the Prince Rupert Fishermen's Cooperative Association Vancouver plant. UFAWU shoreworkers refused to handle an estimated 120 tons of fish.
"The union feels that the attempt to land fish, with the predictable - refusal by shoreworkers to handle it, was an attempt to lay the foundation for court action to obtain an injunction," Nichol declared.
"With the PTA it's not simply a matter of a few boatloads of herring, which financially mean very little, but its longterm policy of establishing its ability to fish during strikes by fishermen who are prepared to fight for better prices and working conditions in their industry. It was a deliberate legal move to ride on the backs of organized fishermen."
The court found that the plaintiffs' legal rights were being See PTA — page 12
The charge made by UFAWU members of the advisory committee that Canada's interests are being sold out in continuing rounds of talks With the U.S. on salmon interception has produced an angry exchange of correspondence.
When UFAWU advisers George Hewison, Elgin (Scotty) Neish and Cliff Gissing returned from talks in Seattle last month, they asserted that Canadian negotiators had "moved round 180 degrees" from a fundamental agreement reached in June, 1971 to the point where they were
proposing a formula similar to that originally advanced by U.S. negotiators.
The UFAWU outlined its opposition to the Canadian position in a letter to federal environment minister Jack Davis, copies of which were sent to all British Columbia MPs and MLAs.
Davis then wrote to MPs and MLAs assailing the union's stand and defending his own, following this up with a letter to UFAWU business agent George Hewison, whose reply is included in the exchange of letters published below.
UFAWU 'blew whistle'
This is the text of the letter sent to provincial public works minister William Hartley by federal environment minister Jack Davis. Similar letters were sent to all British Columbia MLAs and MPs. Dear Mr. Hartley:
You will have received, as I did,'a letter from the United Fishermen and Allied Workers Union, dated Fecruary 20,1974. It opposes the position taken by the Canadian negotiating team at the recent Canada-United States salmon talks in Seattle.
Representatives of the UFAWU were present at these talks. They were taken along as advisers to our Canadian negotiators, as were representatives of other groups such as the Pacific
Trollers Association, the Native Brotherhood of B.C., B.C. Fishing Vessel Owners and the Fisheries Association of B.C., as well as representatives of the B.C. government.
Not only is attendance at these talks a privilege, but it is foolish on the part of any one of these bodies to blow the whistle on the rest.
Canada's negotiating team has the full support of the Trollers, the Native Brotherhood, the Vessel Owners and the companies.
The UFAWU doesn't agree with them. Not only that, but it has decided to make this disagreement public at a critical stage in our negotiations with the United States and which are at
long last beginning to show progress.
The United Fishermen and Allied Workers Union has implied that an agreement is about to be finalized with the U.S.A. This isn't true. There may be several more meetings of our negotiating teams before a draft agreement is submitted to the Canadian government.
The government in turn can either reject it or submit it to parliament. Parliament, through a process of Commons committee hearings and Senate hearings can examine the agreement further. It may insist on changes; it may not.
But, this is a far cry from the imminent signing of an agreement re west coast salmon as implied by the UFAWU in its recent letter to you.
Not only does the union conceal the fact that other segments of our B.C. fishing industry support our negotiators but it makes several gross misrepresentations of fact. It uses old data rather than up to date catch information.
It was wrong to say that our advisers didn't have every opportunity to discuss our Canadian proposals. It is completely wrong when it says and implies that the Canadian negotiating team has bent to every United States demand.
What the UFAWU does not make clear is that it would have our west coast trollers stop taking U.S.-bound fish. It would See SELLOUT — page 8
Fisheries Service doubtful of attainment
'Herring quota depends on central area'
Last word from the Fisheries Service as The Fisherman went to press was that there was considerable doubt the 50,000-ton herring quota would be filled.
An announcement was due this Friday, March 29, regarding further opening in northern areas 1 to 10. But meanwhile, with between 39,000 and 40,000 tons of herring landed, including those from the Gulf of Georgia, and another 12,000 to 13,000 tons still in the ocean, a spokesman
described the situation as "not very bright."
Amid reports of many vessels returning to port, he said that at no time were there more than 130 seiners and 500 gillnetters fishing the coast.
Gillnetters had taken approximately 9,400 of the coastwise total as of March 26, it was reported. They took some 3,200 tons in the Gulf of Georgia.
The west coast quota of 15,000
tons was exceeded by 3,000 tons — the entire quota being taken between 2 p.m. Sunday, March 17 and 9 a.m. the following Tuesday. During the week just ending the major fishery was in northern waters, the Queen Charlotte Islands and the central herring subdistrict.
"Maybe they'll take two thousand tons more from the Queen Charlottes, three more out of the northern subdistrict and maybe one thousand tons out of
Johnstone Strait," the Fisheries Service spokesman explained.
"But this still leaves several thousand tons to come from the central area. Stocks haven't shown there yet in strength, but if they do, there may be a fishery there next week. If they don't, we're not going to make it."
Last year, fishing under the 50,000-ton quota ended at noon March 23, but parts of the coast continued open the following week to allow a harvest of the remaining catch of herring
earned under the two for one dogfish subsidy program.
An estimated 3,562 tons of herring had been taken from Georgia Strait under the dogfish subsidy program as of noon March 27. Coastwise dogfish catches to the same date totalled 4,372 tons, of which 3,695 came from Georgia Strait.
Credits earned under the dogfish scheme were, during the final two weeks of the season, transferred widely from Georgia Strait to other areas of the coast.