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Before proceeding in the history of Local 191, some background information: The International Typographical Union (ITU), of which Local 191 was a member, had a unique bargaining method. If a number of Locals presented an acceptable issue to be included in bargaining, the International Convention would pass a "union law." All Locals were then prohibited from signing any contract which did not include this point. This was the mechanism for the ITU strikes of 1905 - Eight Hour Day, 1926 - The 44-Hour Week, and in the 1930s - The Five-Day Week. Each one of these issues had been incorporated into the ITU "Book of Laws," and subsequently had been acted upon by mass union action. |
During World War II, and because of the resulting labour shortage, the remaining typographers in the industry, in general, signed good-paying contracts. The ITU issue of the five-day week was set aside, and sixth shifts were allowed to operate at straight-time rates if there was a shortage of qualified printers. As a measure to eliminate strikes during the War, federal wartime labour law called upon the parties involved in disagreement to seek conciliation from their respective provincial Wartime Labour Boards. Further to this, the disputes were all subject to arbitration by the War Labour Board by Canadian law.
In 1944, there was a policy shift in the ITU: in order to bypass the wage ceilings of the War Labour Boards, the work week must be reduced, thereby increasing the hourly wage. If there was a need to work longer hours, the publishers would pay overtime rates for the sixth shift. In 1944, this policy became a "union law" and confirmed by membership referendum.
On September 15, 1945 at a meeting held at the Labour Temple in Winnipeg, the following provisions were added to the 1944 Local 191 contract, which was to expire at the end of the month: "Provided that the by-laws of Winnipeg Typographical Union No. 191, and the general laws of the I.T.U., in effect January 1, 1945, shall not be subject to arbitration. ... It is understood that the general laws of the International Typographical Union effect January 1, 1945, not in conflict with this contract, shall govern relations between the parties."(Local 191 minutes book, September 15, 1945, Winnipeg Typographical Union papers)
The publishers of the two newspapers resisted the wage increase that was connected with a shorter work week. The issue was taken by the employers to conciliation. This raised the prospect of artbitration, and the International was to become involved in the dispute.
On November 8, 1945, the composing room staffs of the Winnipeg Free Press and Tribune "went into continuous session at the Labour Temple. Hoping to escape the regulations forbidding strikes while conciliation was in progress, the union attempted to label the dispute a lockout ..." (Bruce Donaldson, paper, "Strike 1945-1950", University of Manitoba, 1977)
For one day, both daily newspapers were shut down. On the second day, however, with a combined Tribune Free Press banner, a newspaper was pasted together and stereotyped into cylindrical form to use on the presses. It was a makeshift typewritten piece of work, dubbed the "two-headed monstrosity" by the strikers. The Local countered with its own publication, Typo News. It was later changed to the Winnipeg News.
The job printers in the Local took on an extra levy to assist the newspaper printers during the strike. The strikers were supported by other workers initially. Members of Local 59 of the Stereotypers and Electrotypers Union and Pressmen's Local 35 walked off the job on November 15. Within two days, the stereotypers and the pressmen were ordered to go back to work ("to honour their contract") by their respective Internationals.
According to the chairman of Local 191's negotiating committee, the Allied Printing Trades Council, which was supposed to be the coordinating body for the printing trade unions, was a "farce" incapable of providing leadership during real disputes.(Local 191 minutes book, November 24, 1945) The Winnipeg News was no less harsh on the actions of the workers: "The pressmen and the sterotypers, despite the orders of their international headquarters, who ordered them to return to their work, are prostituting their honour as union men in accepting the defiled work of strikebreakers" (Winnipeg News, December 5, 1945)
It was not until the December 7 issue of the Winnipeg (Typo) News, that the Local's position was clearly stated: "a 40-hour week with the same take-home pay as was paid for 46 hours" in order to create 21 new jobs, 15 of which would be "filled by World War veterans."
"As printers returned from the war a fear arose with the local (and the entire union) that there would not enough jobs to go around. A forty hour week would create positions for these men. Hopefully the hourly wage would also rise thereby preventing a weekly wage cut for the men already employed. The publishers resisted the increased costs." (Bruce Donaldson, interview with Bill Higgins, paper "Strike, 1945-1950, University of Manitoba, 1977)
This somewhat separated the Local from the International, which had become involved because of issues regarding the general laws not being subject to arbitration. Though the contract proposal did not specifically state that all ITU laws were exempt from arbitration, it was misread by the publishers in order to make it an issue of law. Exclusion from arbitration broke Canadian law. In 1946, Woodruff Randolph, ITU president, clarified the union's stand: "Provided, however, local union laws not affecting wages, hours and working conditions and teh general laws of the international typographical union shall not be subject to arbitration except insofar as such arbitration and the results thereof are compulsory under Canadian law." (House of Commons Debates, August 22, 1946) This was clearly a backdown by the International.
Though this barrier to settlement was eliminated, it was decided by the publishers that they would continue to run an open shop. The newspapers, who had been busy beefing up their composing rooms, took the position that the compositors had not been locked out, but rather had gone on strike illegally. The newspapers refused to negotiate with them. There were parades in support of the printers in Winnipeg. Sympathetic strikes took place at other Southam papers -- Edmonton Journal, Hamilton Spectator, Ottawa Citizen, Vancouver Province. Though the Vancouver Province workers did make gains as a result of the strike, the situation in Winnipeg was deadlocked -- with the publishers refusing to negotiate with the Local. The newspapers had filled their composing rooms with trainees, country printers, and, ironically for Local 191, war veterans. (It can be recalled that part of the argument for a shorter work week was to open up jobs for war veterans.) In any case, the setback that the Local experienced was not a defeat, as, with time, the new shop itself was to become unionized.
An interesting sidelight: In 1946, "the News reported canvassers selling $5 shares in the Winnipeg Co-operative Publishing Company, organized to produce a third daily paper. Nearly two years later, it made its appearance as the morning Citizen." (Charles Bruce, News and the Southams, 1968)