BY NED DMYTRYSHYN AND BRIAN HAUK
CROFTON, British Columbia - "We're more determined than ever to fight the company," said Norm McKenzie, as he walked the picket line with Mike Lundahl and Stu McKinnon. The three strikers are members of Pulp, Paper and Woodworkers of Canada (PPWC) Local 2 at Fletcher Challenge's Crofton Pulp and Paper Mill. "The Industrial Inquiry Commission (IIC) report will mean the loss of 200 jobs at Crofton and hundreds more across British Columbia," added McKinnon.

McKenzie is a pipefitter with 25 years at Fletcher Challenge. McKinnon is a millwright, and Ludahl has been an operator for 15 years at the Crofton operation.

The strikers were commenting on the February 9 recommendations from IIC mediators Vince Ready and Colin Taylor, who were appointed by the New Democratic Party (NDP) provincial government. The NDP is a social democratic labor party with organizational ties to the unions.

By February 19 the 2,400 pulp and paper workers striking at three different Fletcher Challenge mills across the province had voted down the recommendations, with nearly 94 percent opposed. Two-thirds of the strikers are members of the Communication, Energy and Paperworkers Union (CEP); the others belong to the PPWC. The strike is entering its eighth month, making it the longest walkout in the history of the paper and pulp industry in this province.

The Crofton mill employs 850 workers, 700 of whom are members of the PPWC Local 2 and work in the pulp operation. The others are CEP Local 1132 members who work in the paper operation. The report recommends separate application of the collective agreement to each operation.

The IIC report recommended adoption of a six-year agreement and granted the company demands of "full flexibility" and 365-day-a-year operation in exchange for a $3,000 signing bonus.

Strikers on the picket line explained that full flexibility would give the company the right to assign workers to any job, undermining safety and job security. Contracting would be allowed in the skilled trades.

The IIC report also recommends wage increases of just 1 percent the first year and 2 percent each of the five following years. Company pension contributions would be cut by 3.6 percent.

"The report ignored virtually all submissions by the unions on the key issues of the dispute," said McKenzie. "This report is a mirror image of what the company wants. It's total garbage," added McKinnon.

"What happens in this strike will set a precedent for the entire pulp and paper industry in B.C., affecting 12,000 workers. We are fighting for something important when we get so much support from workers across Canada and from around the world, including New Zealand," where Fletcher Challenge is based. "This fight is important not just for pulp and paper workers but for all workers," McKinnon said.

Ludahl explained that two supervisors have already been killed during the strike at Crofton. "They were doing unsafe work," he said. "These are the supervisors that had often tried to get me to do unsafe work, which I refused to do. This industry is dangerous."

Fletcher Challenge rejected the IIC report and announced February 20 that it was on the verge of buying a paper mill outside of British Columbia.

"This company was going to do this anyway. They're out to get rid of the union," stated McKinnon.

Ned Dmytryshyn is a member of the International Association of Machinists Local 764. Brian Hauk is a member of the Canadian Auto Workers Local 3014.  
 
 
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