From the Canadian federal workers strike to actors and writers in Hollywood to port workers in B.C. — not to mention broadcasters at TV Ontario, city workers in Saint John, N.B., and employees at Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries — it’s no wonder this has been dubbed the “summer of strikes”.
After decades of declining membership, unions seem to be having a moment
After decades of declining membership, unions seem to be having a moment in North America.
Over the decades, the number of Canadian workers who belong to unions has shrunk. In 1981, 38 per cent of workers in the country were unionized, according to a recent study by the Angus Reid Institute. Last year, just 29 per cent of Canadian workers belonged to a union.
“Strikes have been virtually non-existent for most of the past 30 years or so,” said Barry Eidlin, a labour expert who studies social movements at McGill University. “Those more collective solutions to people’s problems at work just haven’t been as much on the agenda.”
But from the Canadian federal workers strike to actors and writers in Hollywood to port workers in B.C. — not to mention broadcasters at TV Ontario, city workers in Saint John, N.B., and employees at Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries
