a. j -i ' #01 or t 'j >4 il' t I f s. L OC PIPE (ionsolidaied Bathhurst Whitbyworkers w alk off job to back diem ands at 2 different p lants Whitby was the scene of considerable labor unrest last week as workers at two major industries stayed off the job to back new contract demands. On March 5, 20 workers at Lake Ontario Concrete In- dustries went on strike saying that they'll stay on the picket line for the rest of the winter if necessary. "We'll stay out until we get wha t we want," Jim Breda, a spokesman for the International Molders and Allied Union, was quoted as sayîng alter the pickets were set up, Hie also accused the com- pany of attemptmng to make the strike a long one. although he said that 'it might be a put-on."- Talks between the union and the company broke down two weeks ago after a day-long session with a mediator. The union is asking for a wage increase. the retention of the cost of living allowan- ce and improved benefits. They have proposed a 30- cent-an-hour increase at the beginning of each year of a two-vear contract. The union is also asking that the dental plan be moved into line with the 1980 fee schedule. At last report. the com- pany had offered an annual salary increase of seven per cent. Under the last two-year contract that expired December 1, workers ear- ned a base rate of $6.93 an hour with an additional 94 cents in cost of living allowances. Prior to the strike, the company laid off 30 workers according to Breda, a move which he said may have been in anticipation of the walkout. The cornpany is also known as LOC Pipe and is a manufacturer of concrete pipes- Last Thursday morning. about 200 workers at Whit- bv's ('onsolidated Bathhurst Packaging Ltd. went on strike after negotiations broke down. The two key issues at stake in the talks were common expiry dates for contracts and wage parity with other companies ac- cording to negotiators for the International Wood- workers of America (IWA>, Local 2242. Glen Geer. a spokesman for the union. said that they were in a legal position to strike on March 5. The old contract expired October 31. The last offer made hy the company gave the workers a $1317 an hour increase in the first vear and a 90 cent in- crease in the remaining 16 months of a 28 month con- tract. Geer said that the offer would put his members 50 cents an hour behind Mac- Millan Bloedel Packaging, the leading wage earners in the industry, and would lengthen the contract's lîfe by four months. The IWA is also asking for a cost of living clause and a fully paid dental plan. Under the now-expired agreement, the highest paid worker, a press operator. received $8.25 an hour while the lowest, a general laborer. was paid $6.95. Consolidated Bathhurst manufactures corrugated boxes for such companies as Molson brewerîes, Corning Glass and Proctor-Gamble. Whitby was the second plant in the company to shut down due to strike action. Last Wednesday 100 workers at Consolidated Bathhurst's Hamilton facility walked off the job. The last strike against the company in Whitby oc- curred two years ago and lasted for two weeks. In 1974, there was a nine week strîke against it. At press time. there was no further information on the state of contract negotiation-s in either dispute, mmaà ,Mý- ý Ã7 '5g . .... ..... à n