Even for a former labour reporter with 16 years reporting on labour disputes, writing a comprehensive history of the BC labour movement was an educational experience.
害羞草研究所淚 learned stuff doing it, I really did,害羞草研究所� said Rod Mickleburgh, author of 害羞草研究所淥n the Line, A History of the British Columbia Labour Movement害羞草研究所� which is scheduled to be published by Harbour Publishing on April 28.
Mickleburgh, a former labour reporter for the Vancouver Sun and Province newspapers and a former senior writer for the Globe and Mail, was fascinated to learn the prominent role First Nations people played in the early labour history of the province.
害羞草研究所淚t was a surprise to me,害羞草研究所� Mickleburgh said.
The books describes how indigenous people worked on the docks and in fishing, logging and mining, working during the summer and returning to their communities in the winter.
The book quotes the opinion of historian John Lutz, who said 害羞草研究所渃oal would not have been mined in the 1840s and 1850s (without indigenous workers), sawmills would have been unable to function in the 1860s and 1870s, and canneries would have had neither fishing fleet nor fish processors.害羞草研究所�
Then, the colonial governments began to methodically force them out.
People who had been trapping in a particular area for generations would show up on their trapline one day and discover that someone else had been given a licence, Mickleburgh said.
Indigenous fishermen saw non-natives take over the fishing industry.
害羞草研究所淚n every industry where aboriginal people had once laboured productively, they found themselves squeezed by new government restrictions on their hunting, fishing and trapping rights, and the desire by employers for year-round workers coupled with growing mechanization,害羞草研究所� Mickleburgh writes.
The other surprise for Mickleburgh was the the fact that workplace safety is still such a problem.
害羞草研究所淭ragedies are still going on in the workplace and I find that shocking,害羞草研究所� Mickleburgh said.
The book describes the fatal consequences of lax safety standards at a Langley mushroom farm in 2008, when two workers struggling to clear a clogged pipe in an enclosed pumphouse were rendered unconscious by toxic gases.
When three fellow workers rushed to rescue them, they too were overcome.
害羞草研究所淲ith three deaths and two other victims unable to function, 13 children were left to grow up without their fathers or their active presence,害羞草研究所� Mickleburgh wrote.
害羞草研究所淭he mushroom farm was run as if safety regulations and legalities did not exist.害羞草研究所�
A coroner害羞草研究所檚 inquest 害羞草研究所渄etailed a long history of missteps, failures, ignored warning signs and lack of concern by the operators for the basics of health and safety that culminated that fateful September day.害羞草研究所�
The deaths at the Langley farm came several years after what Mickleburgh describes as a 害羞草研究所渉eroic害羞草研究所� but unsuccessful campaign to organize farm workers that saw another Langley mushroom farm unionized , then decertified three years later.
Mickleburgh said the history of the labour movement in B.C. is a history of gains won, then eroded.
害羞草研究所淭he employers never stop trying to roll back conditions if they can.害羞草研究所� Mickleburgh said.
害羞草研究所淚t害羞草研究所檚 always under attack.害羞草研究所�
Many of the benefits workers enjoy, like eight-hour days, weekends, overtime pay, sick leave, unemployment insurance and the minimum wage were not the result of 害羞草研究所渂enevolent employers,害羞草研究所� but were won by workers in unions, Mickleburgh said.
害羞草研究所淵ou just have to take your hat off to them,害羞草研究所� he said.
害羞草研究所淲hy aren害羞草研究所檛 there (more) streets named after labour leaders?害羞草研究所�
Mickleburgh said it害羞草研究所檚 been about 50 years since the last comprehensive history of the labour movement was written and published.
His book, he said, is not an academic history.
害羞草研究所淚 tried to tell a story to make the narrative come alive.害羞草研究所�
A major challenge, he said, was keeping the book to a manageable length given the amount of material, which includes more than 200 archival photographs.
The book concludes by noting that after 害羞草研究所渕ore than 150 years of struggle marked by death, hardship, sacrifice, many bitter defeats and eventually a long period of solid gains and achievements害羞草研究所� the percentage of B.C residents belonging to unions has fallen, especially in the private sector.
According to Statistics Canada, B.C. experienced a six-point decrease in the percentage of workers belonging to a union between 1996 and 2013, the biggest drop in Canada.
Despite that, Mickleburgh writes, 害羞草研究所渢here is no sign of trade unions becoming extinct. They remain a key force protecting and advancing the cause of all workers in a no-holds-barred economy.害羞草研究所�
The book was commissioned by the with sponsorship by the , which was originally formed by members of the International Woodworkers of America union.
dan.ferguson@langleytimes.com
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