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Brock Labour Studies

@brocklabour.bsky.social
616 followers 208 following 128 posts

Brock University Department of Labour Studies. Also on Facebook & Instagram. brocku.ca/social-sciences/labour-st…

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Brock Labour Studies @brocklabour.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Today! Labour Studies Welcome Event. 1:30-2:30pm. Plaza 600F. All welcome!
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CCPA — Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives @policyalternatives.ca · 24/09/2026
"...people...want to unionize because they want better working conditions, they want a better salary, they need better benefits,” says report author Rachel Brickner. #canlab @ccpanovascotia.bsky.social www.thecoast.ca/news-opinion...
thecoast.ca
Why unionizing in Nova Scotia is so difficult - The Coast | News, events, restaurants, concerts and Burger Week for Halifax, Nova Scotia
Unionization can be a tedious process—especially so in Nova Scotia. Often times, it requires signing membership cards more than once and constant delays in the certification and arbitration process. T...
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Working Class History @workingclasshistory.com · 24/09/2026
#OtD 24 Sep 1945 in NYC up to 1.5 million workers got an impromptu day off when elevator workers in over 2000 city high-rise buildings, including the Empire State building, went on strike against pay cuts stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9699...
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Brock Labour Studies @brocklabour.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
If Ottawa expands its authority to end strikes whenever they significantly affect the economy, it will not “modernize” labour relations. It will tilt the system further in favour of corporations, at workers’ expense. — @profsavage.bsky.social theconversation.com/canadas-prop... #cdnpoli #canlab
theconversation.com
Canada’s proposed labour reforms could shift power away from workers in major disputes
Bill C-39 makes it easier for Ottawa to intervene when collective bargaining produces the very conflict that it is designed to manage.
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Canadian Association for Work & Labour Studies (CAWLS) @cawls-acets.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Liberal labour reforms may be presented as a way to manage difficult disputes. But if Ottawa intervenes whenever a strike has major economic consequences, workers’ bargaining power will be weakened precisely when it matters most. theconversation.com/canadas-prop... #canlab #cdnpoli
theconversation.com
Canada’s proposed labour reforms could shift power away from workers in major disputes
Bill C-39 makes it easier for Ottawa to intervene when collective bargaining produces the very conflict that it is designed to manage.
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Angella MacEwen @angella.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
My week has been wild - how about you? cupe.ca/news/cupe-wi...
cupe.ca
CUPE will defy Bill C-39’s unconstitutional limits on the right to strike if passed
The national executive board of Canada’s largest union, CUPE, has passed a unanimous resolution vowing to defy the Liberal government’s Bill C-39 limiting the constitutional right to strike if it is p...
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Larry Savage @profsavage.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
“National interest” cannot become a catch-all excuse to override workers’ bargaining power whenever a lawful strike has economic consequences. That pressure is precisely what strikes are meant to create. theconversation.com/canadas-prop... #cdnpoli #canlab
theconversation.com
Canada’s proposed labour reforms could shift power away from workers in major disputes
Bill C-39 makes it easier for Ottawa to intervene when collective bargaining produces the very conflict that it is designed to manage.
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Larry Savage @profsavage.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Labour code changes will threaten workers’ right to strike. www.theglobeandmail.com/business/art... #canlab #cdnpoli
theglobeandmail.com
Labour code changes will threaten workers’ right to strike, unions say
Proposed changes include creation of special mediator to assess negotiations where parties struggle to reach agreement
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Canadian Dimension @canadiandimension.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
At a time when there is an intense drive to privatize public services and assets, the LCBO makes the inconvenient case that public ownership can be efficient, profitable, innovative, and serve the public interest.
canadiandimension.com
Public ownership and booze: Raise a glass to the LCBO
At a time when there is an intense drive to privatize public services and assets, the LCBO makes the inconvenient case that public ownership can be efficient, profitable, innovative, and serve the pub...
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Society for the Study of Labour History @sslh.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
A new issue of Labour History Review @livunipress.bsky.social is out now featuring articles by Kevin Morgan, Lewis James Willcox and Ad Knotter. Members of our Society receive three copies of Labour History Review per year. Read the latest issue here: www.liverpooluniversitypress.co.uk/journal/lhr
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Working Class History @workingclasshistory.com · 17/09/2026
#OtD 17 Sep 1849 abolitionist Harriet Tubman and her brothers escaped from slavery. Her brothers decided to go back, forcing Harriet to do the same. But shortly after, Harriet Tubman escaped again, then helped rescue hundreds more enslaved people stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/8941...
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Jacobin @jacobinmag.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
Internal documents disclosed in a British Columbia labor case give us an incredibly detailed look into how exactly Amazon carries out its union-busting operations.
jacobin.com
How Amazon Busts Unions, in Its Own Words
Internal documents disclosed in a British Columbia labor case give us an incredibly detailed look into how exactly Amazon carries out its union-busting operations.
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Broadbent Institute @broadbent.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
With the collapse of 2026 US-Canada trade negotiations in August and the implementation of counter-tariffs by Prime Minister Mark Carney in early September, Canadians are left wondering what happened and what comes next. FULL INTERVIEW 🇨🇦🇺🇸 perspectivesjournal.ca/us-canada-trade-explainer
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LabourStart @labourstart.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
CANADA: Unions, employers split on government intervention in labour disputes www.cp24.com/news/canada/...
cp24.com
Unions, employers split on government intervention in labour disputes
The federal government says employers and unions are divided over how much power Ottawa should have to intervene in labour disputes.
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LabourStart @labourstart.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
CANADA: Why Do Workers Keep Dying on the Job? www.thetyee.ca/News/2026/09...
thetyee.ca
Why Do Workers Keep Dying on the Job? | The Tyee
On a day celebrating workers’ achievements, researcher Sean Tucker explains how we can prevent workplace fatalities.
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Brock Labour Studies @brocklabour.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Making History: Workers, Conflict, and Collective Action CAWLS is holding its 2027 annual meeting Jun 2-4 at Brock University in Canada's Niagara Region. Check out the Call for Proposals here: cawls.ca/en/2027-annu... #canlab #LabourStudies
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Brock Labour Studies @brocklabour.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
www.readthemaple.com/heres-what-l... "Labour Day should therefore be reclaimed as a moment for the labour movement to think beyond the boundaries of individual unions and collective agreements and formulate demands for the working class as a whole." #canlab #canpoli
readthemaple.com
Here’s What Labour Day Is Really About
Dismissing the holiday as an establishment invention misses its origins in working-class struggle.
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Defiance Dispatch @defiancedispatch.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
#Amazon workers in #Riverside, CA went on #strike yesterday over Amazon’s illegal and unfair treatment of workers. Amazon workers stated they were striking for better wages and working conditions, while also speaking with #Teamsters to push for fair pay and a safer workplace. #California
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Brock Labour Studies @brocklabour.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
Full listings of Labour Day events across Canada: workerstogether.ca/events/labou... #canlab
workerstogether.ca
Celebrate Labour Day 2026!
Join workers across Canada this Labour Day. Find an event near you.
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Jacobin @jacobinmag.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
Under capitalism, being unemployed is usually a hardship, and often a financial and personal disaster. Yet the experience of unemployment in countries with generous welfare states is radically different from what Americans are used to.
jacobin.com
A Strong Welfare State Changes the Meaning of Unemployment
Under capitalism, being unemployed is usually a hardship, and often a financial and personal disaster. Yet the experience of unemployment in countries with generous welfare states is radically different from what Americans are used to.
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Brock Labour Studies @brocklabour.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
"The union is fighting to save the auto industry in Canada. Securing the pattern agreement won't mean much if the federal government sacrifices the auto industry in trade war with Trump," @profsavage.bsky.social said. www.cbc.ca/news/busines... #canlab #cdnpoli
cbc.ca
Stellantis and Unifor begin negotiating new contract amid concerns over Brampton plant, auto tariffs | CBC News
The negotiations are the last round of bargaining between the Big Three carmakers — Stellantis, Ford and GM — and Unifor, which represents autoworkers at each. And with the backdrop of American tariff...
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Larry Savage @profsavage.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
Unifor is fighting a war on 2 fronts: In bargaining, it's pushing Stellantis to maintain 🇨🇦 vehicle production & accept the pattern. Meanwhile, in Ottawa, Unifor is fighting any new trade agreement that would sooner or later kill the 🇨🇦 auto industry. www.thestar.com/business/ste... #canlab #cdnpoli
thestar.com
Stellantis, Unifor begin contract negotiations in final round of auto sector talks
TORONTO - The union representing workers at Stellantis began contract talks with the U.S. automaker today, marking the start of the final round of its bargaining with the Detroit Three.
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LabourStart @labourstart.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
AUSTRALIA: University of Sydney staff to strike as union clash over AI and job security deepens www.news.com.au/finance/work...
news.com.au
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CCPA — Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives @policyalternatives.ca · 28/08/2026
CCPA Senior Researcher Stuart Trew in the Jacobin: "The negotiations’ collapse could open space for democratic industrial strategy that rejects free trade." jacobin.com/2026/08/carn...
jacobin.com
Trump’s Art of the Bad Deal Comes to Canada
Donald Trump’s trade demands, which would have killed off whole sectors of the productive economy, like auto, were impossible to accept. The negotiations’ collapse could open space for democratic indu...
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Starbucks Workers United @sbworkersunited.org · 25/08/2026
🚨BREAKING: Our union of over 12,000 baristas are officially calling for a Starbucks boycott. Read this statement penned by Starbucks workers on why a boycott from ALL customers, allies, and organizations is necessary to fight back against corporate greed:
BOYCOTT STARBUCKS is written inside a zig-zaggy speech bubble against crumbled paper. Beside it are the Starbucks Workers United logo and an image of a coffee cup being poured out.We, the 12,000 and growing members of Starbucks Workers United, call on everyone who stands with working people to boycott Starbucks until they finalize a contract with union baristas and stop union-busting.
What we’re fighting for is simple: a minimum $17/hr wage, enough hours to live on, better staffing in our stores, and basic workplace protections. Every year, our living costs rise but our wages don’t keep up – a growing pressure many American workers are feeling as corporate greed accelerates unchecked in our country. 
Starbucks is banking on customers' blind loyalty to the integrity and values this company once stood for in order to keep squeezing them for profits. At a time when working-class people across the country are struggling in a challenging economy, it is no longer possible to be both a Starbucks customer and in support of workers; choosing to spend money at Starbucks is choosing a law breaking corporation over the baristas who make your coffee everyday exactly as you ask for it.
Starbucks has violated U.S. labor law more than any other company in modern history–the NLRB and its judges have found that Starbucks committed hundreds of labor violations and there are currently more than 550 unresolved unfair labor practice charges still pending against the company. Instead of finalizing a fair and reasonable union contract, Starbucks has repeatedly demonstrated a lack of care for the workers who fuel the company’s profits by wasting millions of dollars on AI and technology that doesn’t work, launching countless gimmicky drinks designed to distract from real problems, and inventing pointless policies that do nothing but make our jobs harder. 
This ongoing, irrational behavior by Starbucks and its refusal to settle a fair union contract with workers leaves us with no other choice than to call for a boycott. We know when working people stand up together, we win. 
No Contract? No Coffee.
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Canadian Dimension @canadiandimension.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
What became of the radical promise of the Sixties? Bryan Palmer revisits a generation of New Left activists—their struggles, contradictions, victories and defeats—and asks what their long march through the institutions left behind.
canadiandimension.com
Remembering the radical promise of Canada’s New Left
Books like this remind us that it is imperative to fight back. The Left needs rebuilding so that it presents an alternative to capitalism’s capacity, with its endless appetite for accumulation and its...
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Brock Labour Studies @brocklabour.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
"SEIU’s city-wide bargaining strategy is intended to reduce unfair competition that relies on exploiting low-waged labour. Instead of contractors winning business by paying cleaners less, companies operate under common labour standards." #canlab #canpoli www.readthemaple.com/seiu-is-figh...
readthemaple.com
SEIU Is Fighting For Justice For Toronto Janitors
The union alleges a major facilities-management company is trying to circumvent a fair-pay system
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Brock Labour Studies @brocklabour.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
We are excited to welcome @cawls-acets.bsky.social members to #BrockU next year. Planning for the conference is underway and the call for proposals is open: cawls.ca/en/2027-annu...
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Working Class History @workingclasshistory.com · 21/08/2026
#OtD 21 Aug 1981 140 mostly women workers at the Lee Jeans factory in Greenock, Scotland returned to work after winning a seven-month occupation of the plant against closure, having won their jobs back. Learn more in our tiktok: www.tiktok.com/@workingclas...
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LabourStart @labourstart.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
CANADA: Union ties National Steel Car strike to unsafe incentive pay program www.thesafetymag.com/ca/news/gene...
thesafetymag.com
Union ties National Steel Car strike to unsafe incentive pay program
United Steelworkers Local 7135 links its piecework incentive system to three fatalities and mounting Ministry of Labour scrutiny
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CCPA — Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives @policyalternatives.ca · 19/08/2026
Five years after the national child care program launched, most fees still aren’t $10 a day: Progress on reducing fees has been made in most provinces, but some, like BC, have fallen behind. New report from @policyalternatives.ca #cdnpol www.policyalternatives.ca/news-researc...
policyalternatives.ca
The $10-a-day divide: Child care fees in Canada in 2026 | CCPA
After five years of Canada's federal child care program parents are paying less. But most families still pay more than $10 a day
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Canadian Association for Work & Labour Studies (CAWLS) @cawls-acets.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
"Last summer, Air Canada flight attendants forced the issue [of unpaid work] onto the national agenda. This summer, WestJet flight attendants have pushed it a step further." - Adam King WestJet Flight Attendants Have Won A Major Settlement www.readthemaple.com/westjet-flig... #canlab
readthemaple.com
WestJet Flight Attendants Have Won A Major Settlement
The workers made substantial progress toward their goals, and will now vote on a potential deal
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Working Class History @workingclasshistory.com · 17/08/2026
#OtD 17 Aug 1918 women workers at Willesden bus garage started a wildcat strike for a pay rise and equal pay with men. By 23 Aug about 18,000 women out of the 27,000 in the industry had stopped work. On 25 Aug they got their pay increase. Learn more: stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/8860...
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Larry Savage @profsavage.bsky.social · 15/08/2026
Last year, Unifor 1285 made its first-ever Ontario PC endorsement, praising Doug Ford’s “strong dedication to protecting our auto industry.” Now Stellantis is considering closing its Brampton plant after moving planned production to 🇺🇸. globalnews.ca/news/1202187... #canlab #onpoli
globalnews.ca
Stellantis ‘seriously considering’ closing Ontario assembly plant: Unifor | Globalnews.ca
Stellantis is strongly considering closing an assembly plant in Brampton, Ont., according to a statement from Unifor president Lana Payne on Friday.
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Larry Savage @profsavage.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
When strikes are framed by corporate media mainly as disruptions to consumers, workers’ legitimate grievances and the employer’s role in causing the dispute tend to fade from view. readthemaple.com/media-featur... #canlab
readthemaple.com
Media Featured 2 Times More Passengers Than Workers In WestJet Stories
TV broadcasts and articles cited passengers’ grievances a total of 44 times, while flight attendants’ grievances were cited only 20 times
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LabourStart @labourstart.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
USA: 'One flag for each laid off dev:' Union workers stage unmissable protest for Xbox boss Asha Sharma www.gamedeveloper.com/business/-on...
gamedeveloper.com
Union members stage massive protest for Xbox boss Asha Sharma
It would be hard to miss the giant inflatable rat on the lawn.
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Working Class History @workingclasshistory.com · 11/08/2026
#OtD 11 Aug 1984 during the great miners' strike, 23,000 women marched in London against pit closures. Women Against Pit Closures played a crucial role in supporting the strike more info in our podcast: workingclasshistory.com/2018/10/30/e...
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Charles Smith @profsmithsask.bsky.social · 09/08/2026
Hospital workers fighting to modernize Quebec healthcare. Cool story.
ctvnews.ca
60 years ago, the strike that transformed working conditions in Quebec hospitals
Sixty years ago, the first province-wide strike took place in Quebec’s hospitals. This massive walkout proved decisive for working conditions in the healthcare sector in Quebec and led to the very fir...
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Larry Savage @profsavage.bsky.social · 03/08/2026
WestJet, union reach tentative deal to end strike by flight attendants. www.cbc.ca/news/world/w... #canlab #cdnpoli
cbc.ca
WestJet, CUPE reach tentative deal to end flight attendants' strike that left travellers in limbo | CBC News
Calgary-based WestJet and the Canadian Union of Public Employees have reached a tentative deal, ending a strike ​that has led to the cancellation ‌of hundreds of flights, both sides said early Monday.
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Brock Labour Studies @brocklabour.bsky.social · 02/08/2026
WestJet flight attendants on strike: “If Ottawa steps in, the question is whether WestJet attendants will accept it quietly. Given what happened at Air Canada, that would be a risky assumption,” says @profsavage.bsky.social www.theglobeandmail.com/business/art... #canlab #cdnpoli
theglobeandmail.com
WestJet flight attendants go on strike, grounding more than 300 flights on long weekend
Marathon negotiations continued through the weekend, but neither side made significant inroads on the core issue of compensation
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Broadbent Institute @broadbent.bsky.social · 29/07/2026
As neoliberal globalization took hold, Canadian economic nationalism was hollowed out, and the Waffle’s warnings became reality. NEW from David Coaker for Perspectives Journal No. 6 🧇 perspectivesjournal.ca/requiem-waffle
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The Conversation Canada @ca.theconversation.com · 07/01/2026
Why Canada needs better data on strikes, unions and other labour issues
theconversation.com
Why Canada needs better data on strikes, unions and other labour issues
Canada does a poor job of gathering labour relations information. In a period of rising inequality and renewed workplace conflict, stakeholders need better data.
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Canadian Association for Work & Labour Studies (CAWLS) @cawls-acets.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
A look back by Geoff Bickerton at the unprecedented 2024-26 Canada Post negotiations—and the lessons #CUPW should take from them. canadiandimension.com/articles/vie... #canlab #cdnpoli
canadiandimension.com
The postal bargaining round unlike any other
The 2024-26 Canada Post negotiations were unlike any in recent memory. From national strikes and government intervention to strategic reversals and unprecedented internal divisions, Geoff Bickerton ex...
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Brock University | FOSS @brockufoss.bsky.social · 22/07/2026
Interested in completing a @brocklabour.bsky.social degree but don't meet the standard admission requirements? #BrockU's PLAR pathway gives you the opportunity to turn qualifying experience into academic credit! 📥 Applications for fall term due Aug. 1. Learn more ➡️ brocku.ca/social-scien...
A person wearing headphones and typing on a laptop in an atrium with the text: Put your prior experience to work. Receive academic credit for skills gained through work experience and informal learning with Brock's Prior Learning Assessment and Recognition (PLAR) pathway. Boost your career prospects, fast-track your degree, enjoy flexible learning options.
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Emma Arkell @emmaarkell.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
ICYMI: Dexterra workers who clean transit in Toronto and Vancouver say they’ve been told to clean without chemicals, work alone in unsafe conditions and have faced harassment from management. I wrote about it for @pressprogress.ca pressprogress.ca/workers-who-...
pressprogress.ca
Workers Who Clean Public Transit in BC and Ontario Say Their Employer is Undermining Their Rights
Workers allege harassment from management, a lack of cleaning supplies and unsafe working conditions.
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LabourStart @labourstart.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
CANADA: 'Rich tapestry of irony': Union says Bank of Canada allowing work from home during strike ottawacitizen.com/public-servi...
ottawacitizen.com
'Rich tapestry of irony': Union says Bank of Canada allowing work from home during strike
The labour strike has been ongoing since June 23, which has left the majority of Bank of Canada workers working from home, according to the union and its picketing security guards
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Brock Labour Studies @brocklabour.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
“Context matters,” said #BrockU's @profsavage.bsky.social. “The politics of auto bargaining have shifted. Fear of job loss and production moving south now weighs more heavily in workers’ calculations than dissatisfaction with wages and benefits.” www.thestar.com/business/for... #canlab
thestar.com
Ford Canada workers ratify three-year Unifor deal as trade war fears temper wage demands
Three per cent annual raises and $1.2-billion investment secured as union eyes GM, Stellantis talks.
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UAW Archivist @uawarchivist.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
@uaw.org booklet on guaranteed employment plans. Circa 1950s. From the archives at the @reutherlibrary.bsky.social.
PREPARING GUARANTEED EMPLOYMENT PLAN... THAT FITS U.A.W. Members LIKE A GLOVE
REMEMBER DO YOUR PART TO GUARANTEED EMPLOYMENT PLAN EDUCATE YOUR MEMBERSHIP
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Larry Savage @profsavage.bsky.social · 19/07/2026
74% ratification vote signals that autoworkers at Ford didn’t embrace the tentative agreement so much as they made a strategic calculation to lock in some stability in an uncertain environment. www.theglobeandmail.com/business/art... #canlab
theglobeandmail.com
Ford workers ratify deal bringing 9% raise over three years as auto sector faces uncertainty
Union will now try to apply the Ford gains in the next round of bargaining with Stellantis NV or General Motors
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Canadian Association for Work & Labour Studies (CAWLS) @cawls-acets.bsky.social · 18/07/2026
Herman Rosenfeld has released a collection of essays on class politics and Canadian labour drawing on his background as a shop floor worker at General Motors and in the education department of the Canadian Auto Workers (now Unifor) socialistproject.ca/pamphlets/ou... #canlab #cdnpoli
socialistproject.ca
Out of the Impasse?
Debating Class Politics and Canadian Unions This collection of Herman Rosenfeld’s writings provides a vital record of socialist analysis rooted in the lived experiences of Canadian labour. Drawing on ...
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