Wednesday, March 6, 1968
at my home for eleven o’clock in the morning and invited the press, representa- tives from the Union and the Company and officials from my Department. I read a statement reviewing the situation and indicating the action I was taking in appoint- ing Mr. Daley as a one-man Commission. At two o’clock Mr. Daley called me to advise that settlement had been reached. The employees were back on the job. (Applause) The reason why the press conference was called at my home was that l was ill at the time, having suffered from heavy ‘flu through most of December and I can assure you, Sir, it wasn’t from Christmas spirits nor was liquor in evi- dence anywhere. However, as I recall my wife did serve coffee to those present after the conference so it just wasn’t a bright idea brought up on the spot nor was the newspaper man appointed because he happened to come along. We can assure you. Sir, that we knew what we were doing and to know what we had to do we didn’t need the false courage of alcohol.
L. George Dewar: Good, good, glad to hear it.
Hon. J. Elmer Blanchard: I would like to express my personal appreciation, pub- licly, to Mr. Daley for his efficient and swift settlement of a crisis situation. As far as the rest of your story is concerned I will accept your compliment but I think you're stretching things a bit by classing me with Cyrus Ching and while I am on my feet I wish to thank you for your kind words expressed about my late father and I direct those same words of thanks to the Member from the First District of Kings.
During the year new voting regulations were drawn and passed by Order-in- Council. The Department was called on to supervise fourteen representation votes ordered by the Labor Relations Board and also supervise one strike vote. From April lst, 1967, ten local unions signed working agreements with thirty-two em- ployers. Four agreements are presently under negotiation and an additional three will expire this year. From April 1st, 1967, Department officials participated in a great many meetings at the local, regional and national level. These were: 3 meet— ings held on the Northumberland Strait crossing; 2 Federal-Provincial conferences on the Winter Works program; the annual meeting of CAALL and one committee meeting on Research and statistics; one Human Rights Conference in Ottawa; two local conferences on Industrial Safety; the annual convention of the P.E.I. Federa- tion of Labor; the P.E.I. Nurses’ Assoc. annual meeting. The Department organized and sponsored a Human Rights conference in Charlottetown. The Department played a leading role in organizing the first Labor-Management Relations Conference on Prince Edward Island in April, 1967. Preliminary discussions have been held in Fredericton, New Brunswick, with officials of the Accident Prevention & Compen- sation Branch, Canada Department of Labor, which will lead to a co—operative en- deavour in implementing the Canada Labor Safety Code. The Department was also represented at one National meeting of Boiler Inspectors and one regional meeting which concerned itself with co-ordinating Boiler and Pressure Vessel inspection ser- vices in the Atlantic Provinces. Representatives from the Department also attended a special meeting on Management-Labor Relations in Ottwa sponsored by the Econo- mic Council of Canada and a Labor-Management Conference in Halifax in Novem- ber, 1967. Various appearances have been made by staff members as guest speakers, members of panels, discussion groups and similar activities on a local and Provin- cial basis. It has been an active year in the Department of Labor and Manpower Resources and I expect that this year will be just as active. Problems are many and varied and there is never a dull moment. Thank you (Applause)
Lloyd G. MacPhail (Second Queens): Mr. Speaker, at the outset I wish to add my words of congratulations to the many well merited comments and compliments which you have received on the manner in which you discharge your duties here in connec- tion with the high office which you hold. I, as so many of the others, are very glad to see you back again in this post. We all know that we can rely on you to apply your many talents to the business of the House such that we may proceed with dignity, with despatch, and in harmony and in goodwill. I wish to congratulate, too, the Mover and the Seconder of the Address in Reply to the Speech from the Throne. They have each dischargd their duties and have made comments in a frank, a free and a forthright manner. Now, some mention on, and comment on the con- tents of the Speech is quite appropriate and, indeed, perhaps, expected on this occasion. I have listened with great interest and not without some amusement to the
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