PAGE 4, WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 1984, WHITBY FREE PRESS V~WhitbY w mm Voice of the County Town Michael lan Burgess, F The only Whitby newspaper independently owned and operated by Whitby Publisher - Managing Editor u rc kr-- - n'- "'h '- -i- Publisiied every Wednesday by M.B.M. Publishing and Photography m. Phone 668-61 il The Free Press Building, 131 Brock Street North, P.O. Box 206, Whitby, Ont. MICHAEL KNELL Community Editor Second Class Mai Registration No.5351 remsir aaua~ U vnitAiJy A esiUIenL. Council turn around not adequately justified At Monday night's meeting of Whltby Town Council, this newspaper was wItness to a sudden turn around by a few members of council on gran- ts. Earlier this year, Mayor Bob Attersley and Coun. Ross Batten, stood up in council saying that they should not be giving grants to any organization in the middle of the year. Grants, they said (with the support of this newspaper) should only be given at budget time. Both of these gentlemen stated quite clearly that the municipality should be exercising fiscal restraint and responsibility. And Monday night, both of these gentlemen voted to give the Whitby Brass Band an additional $180 or so to buy new shoulder flashes. Mainstream Canada It's up to you Mr. Warren By Tony Carlson There is a time for every- thing, we are told. If that is so, and who can argue it, then surely now is the time for strong leadership. That applies .not only to our newly elected political chiefs, but also to others whose du- ties have a direct effect on our everyday lives. Specifically, I am speaking of Michael Warren who, as president of Canada Post, makes executive decisions daily that have an impact on most of us. If he goes ahead with a planned postal rate increase to help cover the costs of current labor demands, it will ob- viously affect all consumers of postal service. But more, appeasing the unions now at the expense of the public will make it harder for Warren to 'et his Crown corporation out of the $300 million financial hole it's in. Why? People are already fed up with postal service. More than 60 per cent of re- spondents to a survey by the Canadian Federation of Inde- pendent Business called postal service poor. Hike the price and there's a good chance fewer people will use the mails, finding other, more cost-effective ways of communicating. One has only to look at the legions of courier services which have sprung up in the last few years to realize that Canada Post isn't the only popstand on the block. With-fewer users, the post office's revenues shrink and that won't help either the defi- cit or the poor productivity record. What's needed is for tough leadership and tackle the operation's real problem: too many workers being paid too much for doing too little. The figures tell the tale. The American postal system made $616-million last year com- pared to a loss of $300-million in Canada. American postal workers handled 14.6 pieces of mail for every dollar earned in wages; Canadians handled 9.5 pieces. Wage scales are consistently lower south of the border. Yet posties from Maine to Hawaii have been told their wage demands won't be met. Not only that, Canada has the third highest postal rate among the top' 14 industrial nations at 32 cents (25.6 cents in U.S. currency). The U.S., at 20 cents, ranks second low- est. Even with its proposed three-cent increase this year, the U.S. would still rank sixth lowest and that hike would be the last until the 1990's. Warren and his staff are well aware of these compari- sons and they are working to redress the balance. But rather than looking to raise money by hiking prices, they would be better off to look within their own organization where labor costs eat up 73 per cent of the revenues. It is tougher in the short run to face up to a problem and make some hard decisions. But if Warren bites the bullet and attacks the real problem by reducing labor costs, he will save himself and the general public a lot of grief over the long haul. The choice is. clear, Mr. Warren. The next move is up to you. CFI/ Feature Service Mayor Attersley polnted out that the money will buy enough shoulder flashes - which will depict the marigold, the officiai flower of the Town of Whitby - to last some 15 years. Well, that's not the point. Council decided previously not to give grants to other valuable organizations. These organizations are a force for good within our community. Some of them attem- pt to assist people with their problems, and more often than fnot those people they serve have no one else to turn to. Batten justified his vote for the grant on the grounds that the Whitby Brass Band travels both nationally and Internationally representing the town and promoting Its good name. Whitby, he noted, has been trying to promote itself as the Marigold Capital of the Worid, or at least Canada. Well, so what? Not one member of council (and, by the way, they ail voted to give the grant) said anything. about the $10,000 a year the band already receives from local coffers. Could not the $380 needed to purchase these flashes come from that money? Afterall; $380 Is a small percentage of $10,000. For this newspaper, It is not the size of the grant that is the issue nor the organization receiving it. The Issue is grants, do we give them or don't we? It seems to us, that members of council still haven't made up their minds on this particular subject. The Whitby Brass Band is a worthwhile com- munity organization, but then again so are many of the other groups that have·been denied money this year because of council's previous stand on grants. This newspaper has always supported the no grants policy position. We believe that to be the only fair and equitable policy. After all, if we don't give to one, we don't have to give to the other. We also believe that if these organizations are truly needed by the community, then the community will support it. As an example, we would point to the United Way. The United Way receives no municipal grant, yet year after year the people of this community support it financially because they believe it's needed and wanted. We also believe that public money should be used for public purposes. Taxpayers' money should not be seen as a windfali for community organizations. Public money should be used to build roads, provide police and fire protection, for the education of our children and other things that only a united community can provide. For us it doesn't matter that the flashes are a good promotional tool for the town, or that enough will be purchased for the next 15 years. The issue is grants. Regional Councillor Tom Edwards hit the nail on the head when he remarked just after the vote that the debate had "caused- more verbal squir- ming than I've seen in a long time." We would like to echo these sentiments. All we hope Is that before the 1985 budget discussions being in a few weeks time all mem- bers of council agree to a single policy on grants thereby making their position clear to everyone. M. NE 1 id