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A letter to the editor is presented in response to the article "Immigration and Labour: Australia and Canada Compared" published in "Labour/Le Travail."

The article reviews the book, "The Struggle for the Breeches: Gender and the Making of the British Working Class," by Anna Clark.

The article reviews the book, "Workers and Working Classes in the Middle East: Struggles, Histories, Historiographies," by Zachary Lockman.

Bryan Palmer is succeeding Gregory Kealey, who is stepping down as editor after 21 years. Mark Leier is succeeding Palmer as the book review editor; Palmer had held the post for nearly 15 years. In turn, Andrew Parnaby and Richard Rennie are the new co-editors of the Notebook, succeeding Leier. Andrée Lévesque continues as the French book review editor. Various editorial board changes are noted. As incoming editor, Palmer offers a reflection on the journal and its path forward.

The article reviews the book, "E. P. Thompson-Objections and Oppositions," by Bryan D. Palmer.

The phenomenon of offshore migrant labour in Canada poses an interesting challenge to the literature dealing with unfree labour relations in capitalist societies. This thesis uses in-depth interviews with Jamaican migrant labourers in Ontario, along with supporting statistical data to further our understanding of the subjective domain of labour relations in agriculture. According to the literature The Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program constitutes a system of unfree labour, and many employers in the Ontario agricultural sector benefit from this system. Jamaican migrant workers do not necessarily share this view of unfreedom. While recognising the definite restrictions as defined in the contract, these migrants accept the conditions of employment as a trade off for the opportunity of material advancement not available to them in Jamaica. This discrepancy over the definition of unfree labour reflects the disparities between the North and the South, and needs to be addressed.

Cette étude, réalisée auprès de 1 133 professionnels en ressources humaines au Québec, a identifié, au moyen d'une analyse typologique des loyautés professionnelle et organisationnelle, trois groupes de professionnels. Plusieurs différences de perception concernant les facteurs de remise en question de la carrière ont servi conjointement avec d'autres variables sociodémographiques et de carrière à distinguer et nommer ces trois types de professionnels. Il s'agit des « professionnels établis », « en voie d'être établis » et « non établis ». Une discussion replace ces résultats dans le contexte du renouvellement de la fonction « ressources humaines » qui influence non seulement les tâches et rôles des professionnels du domaine, mais aussi certaines facettes de leur carrière.

Depuis quelques années, les services de ressources humaines font l'objet de vives critiques, et ce, dans un contexte de ressources de plus en plus rares. Une façon de contrer cette menace de l'environnement est de « faire les choses autrement » en se structurant différemment. Par exemple, il est possible de passer d'une structure par fonctions (avec des spécialistes) à une structure par équipes multidisciplinaires (avec des généralistes). Le but de cette étude est d'évaluer dans quelle mesure cette nouvelle forme de structuration — par équipes multidisciplinaires — d'une direction de ressources humaines (DRH) a un impact sur les acteurs touchés par cette réorganisation (gestionnaires et membres de la DRH). Inspirées principalement de l'approche de l'évaluation des DRH par les clients, deux enquêtes par questionnaires ont été réalisées dans une organisation du secteur public. A partir d'un échantillon de 138 individus (79 gestionnaires et 59 membres de la DRH), l'analyse statistique révèle que la restructuration est perçue plus positivement par les gestionnaires que par les membres de la DRH.

The article reviews the book, "L'indemnisation des victimes d'accidents du travail et des maladies professionnelles : aspects juridiques en droit québécois," by Michel Sansfaçon.

A study investigates whether there is evidence of age-related impairment in injury occurrence among assemblers in the Swedish automobile industry. A retrospective analysis of injuries sustained by male and female assemblers over a 10-year period was conducted, employing 5 age categories divided in to 10 yearly strata and 3 time periods. Age-related injury ratios (IR) were calculated for all injuries. Contrary expectation, IRs for older assemblers were generally low while consistently high IRs were recorded for younger assemblers, and for both male and female workers.

Un contexte économique difficile, des besoins de ressources humaines de plus en plus flexibles et une offre accrue de main-d’œuvre ont contribué à l'émergence de nouvelles formes d'emploi à temps partiel ou temporaire, souvent comblées par des agences de location de main-d’œuvre temporaire. Cet article cherche à présenter les conséquences pratiques qu'entraîne une relation d'emploi tripartite, employeur/salarié/agence, sur les droits et les conditions de travail des employés des agences de location de main-d’œuvre temporaire.

The article reviews the book, "La part des militants: biographie et mouvement ouvrier," by Michel Dreyfus and Claude Pennetier.

The article reviews the book, "Worker's control on the railroad: a practical example 'right under your nose,'" edited by by G.R. Pool and D.J. Young.

The article reviews the book, "Le travail déraciné : l'impartition flexible dans la dynamique sociale des entreprises forestières du Québec," by Daniel Mercure.

The article reviews the book, "Seniority and Employment Equity for Women," by Louise Dulude.

Examines longstanding conspiracy theories, as well as the reconsideration of forensic evidence given in Susan Mayse's book, "Ginger: The Life and Death of Albert Goodwin," that the British-born miner and labour activist was murdered by Dominion Police on military orders of the federal government in 1918. Concludes that there was no proof of conspiracy nor was there sufficient evidence to show that the police shooter had intent to murder. Argues, however, that this does not absolve the government and business from culpability since they were responsible for taking Canada into an imperial war - and Goodwin, who opposed conscription and the war, was being pursued by the police for evading conscription.

The article reviews the book, "Things That Never Added Up To Me: Songs of Love, War, Theology, Golf and the Great American Railroad," by Al Grierson.

The article reviews the book, "Conflits du travail, changement social et politique en France depuis 1950," by Monique Borrel.

The article reviews the book, "Paying the Price of Freedom: Family and Labor Among Lima's Slaves, 1800-1854," by Christine Hünefeldt.

Compilation of recent English/French publications on Canadian labour history that emphasize the period 1800-1975. Materials pertaining to the post-1975 period may also be included, although more selectively. [See the database, Canadian Labour History, 1976-2009, published at Memorial University of Newfoundland.]