A6 - Wednesday, February 9, 1983 - North Shore News Look twice Mayor Marilyn Baker and her North Vancouver District council are pressing Victoria for a wide-open variable mill rate instead of confining such a system to just two or three main property classifications. They argue that taxes can be made truly equitable only by “fine-tuning” the mill rate to take account of the maximum number of individual property situations — whether residential, commercial or industrial. On the surface that sounds an ideal way to go. But if Victoria agreed, it could also qualify municipal councils to receive medals Under ‘such a wide-open approach there single-family units and multi-family housing. The approach also implies a range of mill rates that would -recegnize differences between small commercial businesses and industries and their larger counterparts. Inherent in the plan would appear to be the concepts of gearing taxation to services actually provided, and of ability to pay. The complex billing mathematics would of course, be looked after by computers. But the politics of the system could be even more complex. Councils would inevitably be open to the most vigorous lobbying from the many different taxpayer interests affected. The judgement calls for an infinite variety of mill Fate categories could well defeat the wisdom of a Solomon. The temptation to listen to groups with the biggest clout at the ballot box might be strong. Variable mill rates sound a great idea. But it might be wise to look twice before leaping into TOO great a variety. Nothing to hide? Following the revival of North Van District council's TV _ phone-in shows, requests are being heard again for North Van school board — which spends more than council — to face taxpayers on the tube. Certain senior North Van _ school ad- ministrators, however, are reportedly dead against trustees appearing on TV phone-ins. Since trustees are accountable to the public, we wonder why. Surely there’s nothing to hide? sunday news 1139 Lonsdale Ave North Vancouver @8C V/M 2H4 Puodlisher Peter Sie & Associate Publisher HAcotoeset Cae etbrearty Edttor in chiot Noel Wrigit Advertising Director Tam § cancas Personne! Director Mrs Berni Hithard Circulation Director Boan At ihs Cote hoPyrrssenes Production Director Office Menagor eine Aen Manage: Donnas Ge andy etry Poters North Share Nowa toa ton ht OY CC oe a Oe OY Le | cS RM COED LOR Oc Re OS ” ere Wee teas Bees pee cea Sey bey Nee rr pea te deere sbaeee re ee we : man weed Beate pitas be ae are, Yoveu a Dd KN aed baer geet: eta es Ne rte nae totire contents 198? North Shore Free Proea itd All. vohts « ororved reibese ceptions Nett ealacn dwatatle ue eae oi arsed Wrest viwrei + y a) : hohe ve bavett We Uh ATHON S54 S54) Wednesday %4 08) Sunday fo y sm & THIS | PAPER ISRECYC LABL t Display Advertising 980-0511 At ilia eee Classitied Advertising 986-6222 news Newsroom 985-2131 Circulation 986 1337 MAINSTREAM CANADA A ray of hope amid the gloom The nation’s smaller firms have been hit hard by the worst economic turndown since the 1930's, yet there is a glimmer of hope amid the disap- pearance of 80,000 companies in the last year. The good news: 150,000 new firms were created in 1982. Better still, the 64,000- ‘Productivity’? Fo Canadian 200,000 new companies could be set up this year, providing Ottawa delivers the right budget. Nevertheless, the job creation efforts of the small business sector have wot been enough to keep up with spiralling layoffs. As a result. there are no jobs for at least 1.5 million Canadians. While it is difficult, to unbelievable 24 times as many innovations for each research and development dollar as large companies do. ® Japan's manufactuing industry has had greater success and less unem- t because 58 per cent of the employces are in workplaces with fewer than 100 employees, compared to less than 25 per cent in the when the world economy is “—ndusinialized countnes of the West. tn 4 SIU. becoming ‘clear that the “experts” in the corridors of power simply don't un- derstand the nature of en- “PRODUCTIVITY” is today’s big buzz-word. If we don't smarten up and increase our produc- tivity, we'll never pull ourselves out of the current depression. That's the warning from the economic experts — whose track record for being wrong has been one of the most outstanding feats of productivity in recent years. 1 suspect they're staying nght on track, by being wrong again. Think about ut for a minute or two By “productivity” the experts apparently mean we should work harder and/or Jonger And at helps, too, to work smarter The = cad result more “product” for the same wages Alternatively, the amount of “product” wages On this latter basis. seems to mc. were already doings magnificently We have 1.6 million Canadian workers camming Q0 wages and doing no work at all Meanwhile, the remaining 86 per cent of the work force are proving perfectly capable of supplying all the goods and services we desire though admittedly some of them are working longer harder than same for less and leo Vt teat lesson in they wish tat oan obyect productivity tell The onty thing tt doesnt captain os Oeal with the porte ss The puterizatton mic what as how tes 16) mithion (euth os that) cam automaton and oad time Mmootren cnginecriag (ic working smarter) arc alrcady making us ose bighly productive that tower and fewer actual man theours ase needed in the prowess Pve no doubt we could have three’ milhon yobless and life would roll on just as conveniently and efficiently as ever for the rest of us In fact. Professor John Fanna. head. of Walfnd Laurier University’s social work faculty m= Waterloo, Ont. bBeheves cver in- creasing unemployment 1s here to stay. He says we'd better start looking at ways to enjoy life in tomorrow's largely jobless world, where machines will have taken over most of the tasks and witht ensure all the productivity we can handle. The only problem then being (os Farina admits) to devise cquitable ways of distributing the wealth created by the machines and thers handful of (human acolytes Meanwhile the brighter members of the Me Reaecrahion oow in ther jOs are oreporteddy getting the ase CcKAage bast Noctobopists and prve Mobeopists say the brand of middle preelee her new managers thers weekeads on the ski slopes tinsicad of apend working catia Prevuse ster tthe coffe with an CVC Com prec raved ot henm [heyre not interested in climbing the Corporate ladder at the capense of thet Quality ol tbe net the saze cof leisure tame thea pay “trepreneurs, ands their importance to our success or failure at creating jobs. A recent article in Britain’s respected business magazine. The Economist. bluntly outlines the facts: e Since 1969, about two- thirds of Amenica’s aew private sector jobs have come from workplaces with fewer than 25 employees. (A Similar situation exists im Canada.) e* What's more. these small companies lose tess than | per ceat of the days lost through labour disputes by companies with more than 1.000 employees. e Small firms produce an — cheques. is the stich by which they measure then success A recent survey by the Amencan = I cicphonc and Iclegraph Co reveaicd that tess than onc third of its employees wantcd promottoas and = tag buch yobs A similar survey on 1957 had shown more than half the company’s mniddic managers cager to ccach top pa tag pomlons hiey're bright) able and good at what they do” says Professor Fanns of the 19805 genecralon But cheer philusophy has changed trom ther dads day They believe quite mghthy that hfe is for the Living ~ That philosophy suggests 8 preity obvau solutron to the problem of acw The Economist asks this gnestion: Are countmes and businesses adopting the correct quickly-changing entrepreunerial mechanisms to put acw inte productive effect? Sacly, from a government policy viewpoint. the answer to that question in Canada is “No”. Rather than spending milhons to bail out the corporate losers, the Ottawa establishment should make a concerted effort to foster the entrepreneurial spirit. perhaps our country’s greatest resource. As well. policies to better support such rsk taking should be put into place. it's one of the few ways Canadians can be assured of jobs, in both the short term and the long term. (CFIB Feature Service) those 1.6 million jobless — share the work around by giving more Icisure time to everyone presently ¢m- ployed. It happened during the Thirties, when the average work week dropped from SO to 40 hours. The results all round were cxcellicnt, over the next four decades, which saw Canada’s work force soar from 36 per cent to 48 per cent of the population. if the standard work week were vow reduced to 35 hours, it has been estimated that cnough openings would be created to virtually elaminate current uncm ployment. The average worker's net income. cf course, would also drop temporarily by around scven per cent, aficr taking into) account = his reduced income tas But the mighty consumer stimulus to business from 1.6 million additional wage carmers could well restore him to has onginal pay level = guitc quickly The govceramecni would save bilhons on UIC and welfare, which would gc: a long woy towards chminating any =o rceewed inflation ft could be that sample i ventualty we could Goubtless reduce the work weck to a singic day wath cxetyone taking home a pay chegquc to spend oon the productivity being churacd outoovcr the other saa day. by clectromes and robot. But more produc tivity from Auman beings? That's ging backward We necd at tthe 9 the provertnal bole in Ube bcad Raght) Profesor Farina?