Hundreds of unionized forest workers on strike since July 1 turned up the heat on Western Forest Products Wednesday by taking the fight to the company鈥檚 front door in Nanaimo.
In what was a peaceful, but pointed demonstration of solidarity, workers came by the busload from all over the Island and the Sunshine Coast to march on Western鈥檚 corporate offices in Nanaimo鈥檚 city centre.
It was a much-needed shot in the arm for a workforce that has been walking picket lines for 19聽weeks, said union leader Brian Butler.
鈥淚t鈥檚 always good to bring the members together to talk about issues,鈥� said Butler, president of Steelworkers Union Local 1937, which represents the 3,000 striking workers. 鈥淭his was also to send a message to WFP that members are not faltering and begging to get back to work. It鈥檚 the exact opposite.
鈥淭heir position is clear 鈥� we will last one day longer than this company is prepared to take in order to get the agreement we need, which is a fair agreement with no concessions.鈥�
There are no talks scheduled for the two sides and there has been no word from Western since the union flatly rejected an invitation two weeks ago to enter binding arbitration to settle the dispute.
The Steelworkers have said binding arbitration is unacceptable, but it is open to returning to talks with mediators Vince Ready and Amanda Rogers.
Workers from all over the coast turned up with signs with messages for Western chief executive Don Demens to stop stalling and get back to the negotiating table, expletive-laced T-shirts suggesting the company simply doesn鈥檛 care about its workers, balloon pigs with 鈥済reed鈥� tattooed on them and a resolve to outwait Western.
鈥淭he younger generation may not understand why we are doing this, but my grandparents and I fought for this [contract] and we are not about to go backwards,鈥� said Sylvia Catchpole, who has worked for Western for 43 years at Cowichan Bay. 鈥淲e fight for the generations to come.鈥�
Catchpole said she is not really feeling the financial pinch, given she鈥檚 had plenty of time to put money away and her husband is still working, but she feels for younger workers who are struggling to feed their families and pay their bills during the strike. 鈥淚t鈥檚 got to be tough for them.鈥�
She laid the blame for the hardship at Western鈥檚 door. 鈥淚t鈥檚 only this year that Western hasn鈥檛 been making millions and that sickens me, how can they justify what they are doing to all the people who make the money for them.鈥�
Charlie Aikman, a 45-year veteran from Port Alberni agreed, noting he鈥檚 not sure why the company has been so rigid in this round of bargaining.
鈥淲e have worked with them when times have been tough because we wanted to keep working, why when they have been making money are they doing this ... it makes no sense,鈥� he said.
Aikman is nearing retirement and hasn鈥檛 felt the financial sting of this strike yet, and he said some of the younger workers he鈥檚 been talking to do understand what is at stake.
鈥淚 think the feeling is if we don鈥檛 win this there is no future for them anyway, so I think they understand,鈥� he said.
Many of the younger workers attending Wednesday鈥檚 rally did not want to be interviewed, with one suggesting they didn鈥檛 want to stand out for fear Western could make life difficult for them when they do go back to work.
The march and rally featured speeches from former IWA president Bill Routley, Steelworkers district vice- president Steve Hunt and sa国际传媒 Federation of Labour president Laird Cronk among others.
Each had the crowd roaring with chants of 鈥渙ne day longer, one day stronger鈥� and encouraging them to stay strong in the coming weeks.
Cronk told the crowd that what Western has been doing is not just targeting its own workforce, but families and communities that rely on those forestry jobs. 鈥淵ou鈥檙e screwing with human beings,鈥� he shouted at Western鈥檚 office building. 鈥淎nd that鈥檚 just wrong.鈥�
Butler said the mood of workers remains very positive, 鈥渋n the sense that anyone out for four months is hurting to some level financially. But the mood is strong and they are united in the fact they really dislike this employer.鈥�
