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The Huron Expositor, 1989-12-06, Page 1INDEX '1E Graduates — A6 Sports — Al2-A14 Births — A19 Weddings — A19 Obituaries — A20 Santa Claus cornes to town. See pages A10 and Al 1. {age A13. Serving the communities and areas of Seaforth, Brussels, Dublin, Hensall and Walton Hugon xpositor Leaforth, Ontario HURON EXPOSITOR, WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 6, 1989 50 cents a copy Management and union clash over grader shipping BY NEIL CORBETT Locked out Champion Road Machinery employees attempted to block manage, ment from loading and shipping graders in the company's yard Tuesday morning. One employee was knocked to the ground by a grader tire, and taken to the hospital in an ambulance as the situation grew volatile. Truckers and non-union Champion employees were at a Laidlaw yard near Champion's main plant by 7 a.m. Tues- day morning loading graders, amid shouts of "scab" from the picket lines. Numbers grew on the picket lines as employees began arriving at the plant. Union spokesmen told truck drivers they were breaking a picket line, but mostly failed to convince them to turn back. About *lit graders had been loaded and driven away from the Laidlaw lot by noon. But a swarm of workers defied at- tempts by Goderich town police and hired Burns Security Guards to keep them from interfering. Workers blocked the gates to the "boneyard" where nine graders were stored, and prevented them from being loaded on trucks. GROUPS CLASH - Locked out Champion Road Machinery employees attempted to block management from loading and shipping graders in the company's yard Tuesday. Cor- bett photo. The lead grader nosed through the gate behind several police officers who cleared a pathway. But the machine was brought to a halt by the workers and an employee who was knocked down by a tire. The worker complained of lower back pains and was taken to the hospital on a fracture board. The grader, now with a deflated tire, backed into the yard and the gates were closed at about 10:30 a.m. Talks were scheduled to resume today between management at Champion Road Machinery and its locked out employees. Union officials said yesterday that talks between the union bargaining team and Champion were scheduled to start Wednesday and continue through Friday. A mediator ,:s been appointed and will be involved in this round of negotiations. Champion management spokesman Mike Stilly would not confirm this week that talks had resumed. The company, which has maintained a "no comment" position throughout the dispute, has said awning about union actions. But a December 1 letter to all employees from Champion President Art Church urges workers to accept what he describes as the final offer. Champion .workers, members of the In- ternational Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, were locked out November 21 when they voted to reject what management said was its final offer. The company's proposed three-year agreement .called for a two year wage freeze with a three per cent increase in the third year. Cost of Living allowance would be eliminated, shift premiums lowered, 25 per cent of benefits paid for by workers, holidays reduced, and wor- ding changes made which union negotiators felt would restrict members' ability to exercise seniority rights. Tuesday afternoon, local union presi- dent Don Goddard was not sure if negotiations scheduled today would con- tinue following Tuesday's altercation. "We're locked out and they're still ship- ping the product," he said. The union does not know where the shipped graders, which were not fully manufactured, were to be taken for completion. Vanastr • PRIDE pia A public meeting was held last Tuesday night at the Tuckersmith Township offices for the unveiling of the Vanastra communi- ty improvement plan. The plan, which will be implemented over the next three years under the auspices of the P.R.I.D.E. pro- gram, outlines the proposed cash flow and improvement work slated for the village. Henry Centon appeared before Council and one member of the public on behalf of R.J..Burnside.,and Associates of Stratford, the consulting engineers and planners who prepayed the report for the township. The plan was commissioned after the Ministry of Municipal Affairs informed Tuckersmith that $200,000 had been allocated for the township under the P.R.I.D.E. program. Under the terms of the grant, this amount must be matched by Tuckersmith over a three-year period for a total of $400,000 to be used in "improving municipal services and/or social and recreation facilities within the designated 'Community Im- provement Project Area"'. The Township of Tuckersmith designated Vanastra as the official improvement area, and R.J. Burnside and Associates were contracted to prepare the report. The com- pany, analyzed the demographics of the village, taking into consideration the strengths and deficiencies of the area unveiled facilities and services and the needs of priorities of residents, municipal officials and council. Three main areas of consideration were pinpointed by the report. -Street lights will be replaced in the Vanastra Industrial Area at a cost of $30,000. -The deck tiles will be replaced and the pool itself repainted at the Vanastra Recreation Centre, at a cost of $254000. -Road reconstruction, including replace- ment of storm and sanitary sewers and watermains, will be done on Toronto Road froth Quebec Road to Halifax Road, and along Quebec Road from Toronto Blvd. to within 30 m south of Halifax Road, at costs of $100,000 and $235,000 respectively. In addition, $10,000 has been allocated for administrative costs involved in the project. The implementation period for these pro- jects will run from 1990 to 1993, and a detailed cash-flow and project table was presented within the report. The report also states that "the Township recognizes that provincial contributions may be limited to not more than one third ($66,666.66) of the $200,000 contribution by 31 March, 1991, the second third by 31 Turn to page 20A T r—a WYKDRS flyer N s GTN AVE 0 AVENUE T� AVNU --1 /77 AVENUE os t --W DAb_ a �= a A BLVD .4=111111111111110j "1"m OB BEC RD. .ilt11ii1.i�� 4 INA 1111.1.1.11"11% 111111 11111111110 *41 , VICTORIA BLVD ANOAE CT� Sa llh<1.�ullui.. Ia RECONSTRUCTION OF ROADS, STORM 000 SANITARY SEWERS AND WATERMAIN REPLACEMENT OF STREET LIGHTS T INREPLACTERIOR WAEMENTLL OF TILE ON 0001. DECK AND ON FIGURE' 10 Vanastra P.R.I.D.E. Study PROPOSED PROJECTS (1990-1993) 000 000 left ESKIMO PIES? - This eskimo and her friend the penguin were 1989 Santa Claus SIA Fridaynight. parhem lvlde obhThey certainly probably the most suitably dressed of all the participants in the seem to be enjoying themselves. Robinetphoto County teachers to get 5.3% hike Huron County's 283 secondary school teacher's will receive a 5.3 per cent salary increase this year. The raise is part of a two-year collective agreement ratified by the Huron County Board of Education Monday at it's final meeting of 1989. The teachers, represented by District 45 of the Ontario Secondary School Teachers' Federation, will be covered by the new agreement for the 1989-90 and 1990.91 school years. The contract calls for a 5.3 per cent in- crease in grid salaries retroactive to September 1, 1989, followed by another in- crease equal to the change in the Cana- dian cost of living plus one per cent ef- fective September 1, 1990. The increase sets minimum and max- imum teachers' salaries in Huron Coun- ty at $25,808 and $55,830. The new agreement also calls for changes in staffing which will add an ad- ditional three to five teachers as of September 1, 1990. Part of the additional staff will be for coordinating the such new programs as alternative education, adult education and cooperative educa- tion, which have been introduced in the last few years. For benefits, a new dental plan will be provided by the board as of April 1, 1990. The board and the teachers have for four successive years concluded negotia- tions before Christmas in the year in which they started. This is the first two- year agreement to be completed before Christmas in at least 15 years. Van Den Broeck new board chairman BY NEIL CORBETT Joan Van Den Breech is the new chairman of the Huron County board of Education following the board's in- augural meeting December 4. Van Den Breech, a Saltford resident, represents Colborne and Goderich Townships on the board, and has been a trustee since 1981. She has served on all of the board's committees, has been vice chair for the past two years, and will now serve a one year term as chairman. Van Den Broeck said she will share her view of the board's appropriate direction for the future at the first meeting of 1990 in her inaugural speech. In the meantime she and the director of education, Bob Allan, .will be meeting with officials with the Ministry of Education to ;analyze the provincial government's evAtallons. Van Den Broah rephtces John .Jewitt, trustee for Hallett and Blyth, who has served as chpirrnan.for two,y'.ars. In his speech of ,appreciation Allan noted Jewitt came into his second term with difficult 01 10041 issues ;which he handled capably, such as 300 elemen- tary who *Attended a' hoard m f to declare ,heir opinion Of `cont act neggotiations, and ��pir'incl l trans ars ,,witch were un ,r f th thepublic station s All "ereate:d n - precedented pressures on the chair." VICE -CHAIR Bea Dawson and Tony McQuail ran for the position of vice -chair, and Dawson was selected by her fellow trustees to Serve. McQuail lives in Lucknow and represents the Townships of Ashfield and East and West Wawanosh on the board. He is serving his third term and is a senior trustee, and has served on all the board's main committees and several ad hoc committees. Dawson has been a trustee for four years. She lives in Hensall and represents Hay and Usborne Townships and the Village of Zurich. She was per- sonnel committee chairman before be- ing elected vice -chair. COMMITTEE CHAIRMEN Audrey McClennan, trustee for Stanley Township and the Village of Bayfield, was voted by colleagiles to serve as chairman of the edueation committee over Norman Pickell, representing Goderibh, who was also nominated for the position. Goderich Trpstee,Ifiick Rompf was ac- claimed management committee chair- man, and Den McDonald of 'the 'township of Grey and the Village of Brussels, a ;senior ,trustee elected bt 1969, was ma personnel conuulttee hairmar