The Winnipeg General Strike of 1919 was one of the most famous and influential strikes in Canadian history. For six weeks, May 15 to June 26, more than 30,000 strikers brought economic activity to a standstill in Winnipeg, Manitoba, which at the time was Canada's third largest city. In the short term, the strike ended in arrests, bloodshed, and defeat, but in the long run it contributed to the development of a stronger labour movement and the tradition of social democratic politics in Canada.
The Communist Party of Canada is a federal political party in Canada, founded in 1921 under conditions of illegality. Although it does not currently have any parliamentary representation, the party's candidates have previously been elected to the House of Commons, the Ontario legislature, the Manitoba legislature, and various municipal governments across the country. The party has also made significant contributions to Canada's trade union, labour, and peace movements.
The Socialist Party of Canada (SPC) was a political party that existed from 1904 to 1925, led by E. T. Kingsley. It published the socialist newspaper, Western Clarion.
J.S. Woodsworth was a pre–First World War pioneer of the Canadian Social Gospel, a Christian religious movement with social democratic values and links to organized labour. A long-time leader and publicist in the movement, Woodsworth served as an elected member of the federal parliament from 1921 until his death in 1942. In 1932, he helped to found the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF), a forerunner of the New Democratic Party (NDP).
Albert "Ginger" Goodwin, nicknamed Ginger for his bright red hair, was a migrant coal miner who advocated for workers' rights and promoted the cause of unions in British Columbia, Canada. Angered by the working conditions in coal mines, Goodwin sought to increase wages and improve working conditions, and fought companies that disregarded workers' rights. He participated in and led multiple strikes, and served as a delegate for the British Columbia Federation of Labour and as an organizer for the Socialist Party of Canada. In the years following his increased activism and involvement with labour unions, Goodwin fell under scrutiny for his opposition to military conscription during World War I. He was killed by a police officer in 1918. There is debate on whether Goodwin was a victim of murder or if his death was the result of the officer's self-defence. His death sparked a one-day general strike in Vancouver on August 2, 1918, which was the first general strike ever held in Canada. The strike was a precursor of the Winnipeg general strike of 1919 and other labour conflicts.
The Trades and Labor Congress of Canada was a Canada-wide central federation of trade unions from 1886 to 1956. It was founded at the initiative of the Toronto Trades and Labour Council and the Knights of Labor. It was the third attempt at a national labour federation to be formed in Canada: it succeeded the Canadian Labour Union which existed from 1873 to 1877 and the Canadian Labour Congress which held only one conference in 1881.
Arthur Herbert "Slim" Evans was a leader in the industrial labor union movement in Canada and the United States. He is most known for leading the On To Ottawa Trek. Evans was involved in the Industrial Workers of the World, the One Big Union, and the Worker's Unity League. He was a member of the Communist Party of Canada.
The British Columbia Maritime Employers Association is an association representing the interests of member companies in industrial relations on Vancouver's and other British Columbian seaports.
The Socialist Party of British Columbia (SPBC) was a provincial political party in British Columbia, Canada, from 1901 to 1905. In 1903, the SPBC won seats in the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia.
Helena Gutteridge was a feminist, a suffragist, a trade unionist and the first female city councillor in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Helena was recognized for being a pioneer in pushing for women's rights in British Columbia during a time when gender equality was not yet a prominent social movement and discourse.
Bloody Sunday was the conclusion of a month-long "sitdowners' strike" by unemployed men at the main post office in Vancouver, British Columbia. It was Depression-era Vancouver's final violent clash between unemployed protesters and police that provoked widespread criticism of police brutality.
The One Big Union (OBU) was a Canadian syndicalist trade union active primarily in the western part of the country. It was initiated formally in Calgary on June 4, 1919, but lost most of its members by 1922. It finally merged into the Canadian Labour Congress in 1956.
This is a timeline of labour issues and events in Canada.
Ginger: The Life and Death of Albert Goodwin is a non-fiction book written by Canadian writer, Susan Mayse; first published in January 1990, by Harbour Publishing. In the book, the author gives a narrative account of the life and "untimely" death of Albert "Ginger" Goodwin; a migrant coal miner from Treeton, England. In 1910, Goodwin arrived on Vancouver Island to work in the Cumberland mines. He became an active labour leader, organizing local unions for collective bargaining.
William Arthur (Bill) Pritchard was a Canadian Marxist labour activist, organizer, editor, journalist, and politician. A major figure in the One Big Union movement, he also was one of the defendants in the 1920 sedition trial of leaders of the 1919 Winnipeg General Strike. Pritchard later was elected reeve (mayor) of Burnaby, British Columbia, during the Great Depression.
Richard Parmater (Parm) Pettipiece was a Canadian socialist and publisher. He was one of the founders of Socialist Party of Canada, and one of the leaders of the Canadian socialist movement in British Columbia in the early 20th century. Later he moved into the moderate trade union movement, and for many years was a Vancouver alderman.
The United Brotherhood of Railway Employees (UBRE) was an industrial labor union established in Canada in 1898, and a separate union established in Oregon in 1901. The two combined in 1902. The union signed up lesser-skilled railway clerks and laborers, but had the ambition of representing all railway workers regardless of trade. The Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) was determined to break the UBRE and provoked a major strike in Vancouver in 1903. The CPR used strikebreakers, spies and secret police to break the strike. The crafts brotherhoods of engineers, conductors, firemen and brakemen would not support the UBRE. The strike failed, and the UBRE disintegrated over the next year.
The Western Labor Conference was a radical Canadian labour convention held March 13-15, 1919, in Calgary. It is known for being the convention at which One Big Union was formally proposed.
Blanche Eileen Tallman Sufrin was a Canadian author and labour activist. In 1942, she led a strike of bank employees in Montreal, the first strike in the Canadian banking industry. She later led a drive to unionize employees at Eaton's and helped organize 9,000 Eaton's employees between 1948 and 1952. While the attempt was unsuccessful, the pressure led Eaton’s to increase employee salaries and benefits. In 1979, Sufrin was one of seven women awarded the Governor General’s Medal, commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Persons Case.
The Canadian Labour Revolt was a loosely connected series of strikes, riots, and labour conflicts that took place across Canada between 1918 and 1925, largely organized by the One Big Union (OBU).
