Labour History

• Lives Lived Arthur E. Skaling

       Arthur Embert Skaling was born in Cambridge, Nova Scotia on September 9, 1891, into a family of five brothers and two sisters. He was the son of Joseph Frederick Skaling, who was a mason contractor, and Margaret Belle MacLean.      Skaling received his early education in the Nova Scotia public school system. He also... Read the rest of the story

• Lives Lived Frank X Crilley

          Francis X. Crilley was born in Saint John on November 3, 1907. He was the son of an Irish immigrant, who came to Saint John and worked as a bricklayer. Frank learned about the labour movement early in life as his Father was an active member of Local 1, of the Bricklayers Masons... Read the rest of the story

• Arson, Murder and a Horse Named Kitty

  (The 1917 Plumbers Strike) By: George Vair The early part of the twentieth century witnessed a series of violent strikes throughout North America that shook capitalism. Workers were fighting for union recognition, shorter hours of work and better wages. The corporations, with the assistance of the governments, resisted any attempt by workers to unionize. They used many... Read the rest of the story

• The 1949 Canadian Seamen’s Union Strike

  (The Saint John Story) By: George Vair The story of the 1949 Canadian Seamen’s Union (CSU) strike is an appalling story in the history of the Canadian labour movement and indeed Canadian history in general. It is a story about anti-union shipping companies, who demonstrated a blatant disregard for the law, about a corrupt rival International union... Read the rest of the story

• For Whom The Bells Toll

  Image of the first ringing of the Labourers Bell (1849) Their peal now summons the faithful to mass, but years ago the bells at Stella Maris Church on Bayside Drive and St. Jude’s Church on Lancaster Street served a much different but equally divine purpose. The bell at Stella Maris first tolled from Market... Read the rest of the story

• The Saint John Street Railwaymen’s Strike and Riot. 1914

  *By: Robert H. Babcock * In July of 1914 a boisterous crowd of perhaps 10,000 people gathered in the wake of a trolley strike. Under cover of darkness they overturned two streetcars, thwarted a cavalry charge, smashed every window in traction company offices, and poured cement on a dynamo, plunging the city into total darkness. “Most... Read the rest of the story

• The Origins of May Day

  We want to feel the sunshine; we want to smell the flowers; We’re sure that God has willed it, and we mean to have eight hours. We’re summoning our forces from shipyard, shop and mill Eight hours for work, eight hours for rest, eight hours for what we will. (Words from the “Eight-Hour Day Song”) *By... Read the rest of the story

• On the March

  The Labour Day Parade, Saint John (1902) *By: David Frank* All night long the foghorn sounded on Partridge Island. When day broke on the first Monday morning in September 1902, it was cold and misty in the streets of Saint John. Still, nothing seemed to dampen the enthusiasm of the men who crowded into the area around the... Read the rest of the story

• No Hot Cargo for Argentina

  *By: George Vair* In the early morning hours of 3 July 1979, a thick fog lay over the Saint John waterfront. But this was no deterrent to the protesters who were quietly beginning to gather on the west side of the harbour next to the gates of the container terminal. As the foghorn on Partridge... Read the rest of the story

• Labour needs more Crilley's and MacLeod's

  The following article appeared in the 1973 Saint John District Labour Council “Convention Journal.” The Journal was distributed at the New Brunswick Federation of Labour convention—held in Saint John June 4th-6th of that year. The Labour Council asked—the then Editor of the New Freeman—Bob Merzetti to write an article for the Journal on two long-time labour... Read the rest of the story

• October 14, 1976 - The Saint John General Strike

  *By: Raymond Léger* After the Thanksgiving weekend, on October 13, 1975, Pierre Elliott Trudeau, the Prime Minister of Canada appeared on television to announce that his government would bring wage and price control for all Canadian workers. On October 14, 1975 the Liberal government introduced Bill C-73 to the House of Commons in Ottawa. Far from... Read the rest of the story

• Labour Day or Holiday?

  A History of Labour Day in Saint John, N.B. *By: George Vair* Labour Day differs in every essential way from the other holidays of the year. All other holidays are in a more or less degree connected with conflicts and battles of man’s prowess over man, of strife and discord for greed and power, of... Read the rest of the story

• The Origins of April 28th as The Day of Mourning

      At the 1984 Convention of the Canadian Labour Congress a resolution was adopted declaring April 28th as a “National Day of Mourning” to honour those workers in Canada who have been killed, injured or disabled on the job, or who suffer from occupational diseases. April 28th was chosen because on that day in 1914... Read the rest of the story

• In Search of Ella Hatheway

  *By: Susan McAdam* Who was Ella Hatheway? What we know of her is that she lived from 1853 to 1931. We know she was a suffragette who also worked on several other social reform projects. She has been included in scholarship about the Canadian and local suffrage movement and other reform activities. She was married to... Read the rest of the story