[LabComm] Unions make softwood proposal to US Department of Commerce

[Scott lunny]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

July 25, 2003

 

UNIONS IN CANADA AND UNITED STATES MAKE JOINT PROPOSAL TO DEPARTMENT OF
COMMERCE TO END SOFTWOOD DISPUTE

 

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA - Four forest unions and two labour
federations in Canada and the United States have made a joint submission
to the US Department of Commerce (DOC) that outlines an alternative path
toward a long-term resolution to the ongoing softwood lumber dispute.

 

"The IWA has well over 10,000 members out of work today because of the
punishing tariffs on softwood exports to the US and you can add to that
thousands more CEP members and the many American workers who are also
suffering.  There is no doubt we need to put an end to this dispute and
we need to do it soon," said Dave Haggard, president of the 55,000
member Industrial, Wood and Allied Workers of Canada (IWA).

 

"The issue for us is the fact that workers, their families and our
communities are the ones suffering, whether you make lumber in BC,
northern Saskatchewan of Arkansas," he added. "The proposal we are
supporting takes into account the interests and impacts on workers and
communities."

 

The union proposal is in response to the request by the Commerce
Department for comments on its own approach to end the trade cases and
represents the only multi-party, cross-border agreement on a solution to
the dispute.  The labour organizations that cooperated to make the
submission are the IWA, the Paper, Allied-Industrial, Chemical & Energy
Workers (PACE) International Union; International Association of
Machinists and Aerospace Workers, Woodworkers Department (IAMAW);
American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations
(AFL-CIO); Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada
(CEP); and the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC).

 

The unions have expressed concern about the DOC's requirement that
Canadian provinces eliminate long-standing programs and provisions of
their forest policy as a pre-requisite to removal of the punishing
tariffs on softwood lumber (or any temporary export tax implemented to
replace the duties).

 

"In our view, requiring that kind of change to our forest policy will
place even more hardship on workers in this country," added Haggard.
"In essence, we feel the Commerce Department's cure may end up being
worse than the disease."

 

The union's alternative proposal is accompanied by a joint statement and
is available on the IWA website (www.iwa.ca).

 

For further information contact Scott Lunny (604) 329-5308 or Norman
Garcia (604) 683-1117

 

 

Scott Lunny

Director, Policy & Information Services

Industrial, Wood and Allied Workers of Canada, CLC

 <http://www.iwa.ca> http://www.iwa.ca

 

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