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The article reviews the book, "Labor Market Regimes and Patterns of Flexibility: A Sweden-Canada Comparison," by Axel Van Den Berg, Bengt Furaker and Leif Johansson.

This paper reports on a remarkable partnership between Saskatoon Chemicals and a local of the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union. The partnership emerged after years of bitter relations and, on the basis of great union strength, progressed to involve continuous, interest-based bargaining and an extensive, jointly determined work redesign process. Both parties achieved significant benefits from the high performance partnership before the high performance work system was developed. Evidence also shows that continuous bargaining can work. Divisions within the union over its appropriate role and accountability helped to prevent co-optation, and ultimately led to a return to a more traditional labor-management relationship. The case raises important questions for unions, regarding industrial democracy in a rapidly changing work context.

Au cours de la dernière décennie, plusieurs auteurs se sont interrogés sur les facteurs qui ont fait chuter le taux de syndicalisation dans certains pays et qui sont à la source de sa stagnation dans d'autres. Parmi les facteurs de nature structurelle, le déplacement des emplois de la grande entreprise vers la petite entreprise, de l'entreprise publique vers l'entreprise privée, du secteur manufacturier vers le secteur des services constituent ceux qui reviennent le plus souvent. Dans la foulée de la restructuration des services, on peut constater au Québec comme dans d'autres pays occidentaux, un mouvement en faveur de nouvelles formes d'organisation sociale visant la production de biens et services. Ces organisations prennent la forme de petites entreprises communautaires du secteur des services privés, ajoutant ainsi à la masse de salariés, pour la plupart non syndiqués, de ce secteur. Cet article vise à évaluer le potentiel de syndicalisation des salariés du communautaire. Cette évaluation qualitative est faite à partir de données recueillies lors d'entrevues dans six entreprises types du secteur communautaire dans l'Outaouais, de commentaires rassemblés lors de réunions de groupes focus d'informateurs-clé et de rencontres avec des représentants syndicaux. Les données sont analysées à l'aide d'un modèle explicatif de la propension à se syndiquer. Suivent quelques considérations stratégiques pour les organisations syndicales intéressées par la syndicalisation de ces groupes de salariés.

The article reviews the book, "Les entreprises et l'emploi : les nouvelles formes de qualification du travail," by Annette Dubé and Daniel Mercure,

The article reviews the book, "The State of Working America, 1998-99," by Lawrence Mishel, Jared Bernstein, and John Schmitt.

The article reviews the book, "The Trials of Masculinity: Policing Sexual Boundaries, 1870-1930," by Angus McLaren.

Historian Craig Heron introduces the 1945-48 memoir of Alfred Edwards, who worked at National Knitting MIlls, a textile mill in Hamilton, Ontario. Edwards, who had been a union activist prior to WWII, describes the changes in the relations of production that he observed upon his return to the plant from military service. He also discusses the decision of the shop union to join the Textile Workers Union of America, the struggle for local control in a bureaucratized international union, and the conflict between social democratic and communist unions at the Canadian Congress of Labour convention in Toronto in 1947.

Discusses efforts to unionize fast-food workers, in particular the drive at the McDonald's in Squamish, BC. [Note: The workers voted to decertify less than a year later, before a collective agreement was signed.]

The article reviews and comments on J. L. Granatstein's "Who Killed Canadian History?" (1998), Ken Osborne's "In Defence of History: Teaching the Past and the Meaning of Democratic Citizenship" (1995), and Bob Davis's "Whatever Happened to High School History? Burying the Political Memory of Youth: Ontario, 1945-1995" (1995).

The article reviews the book, "Empire of Free Trade: The East India Company and the Making of the Colonial Marketplace," by Sudipta Sen.

This paper develops the concept of interlocking hierarchies [within the working class] by focusing on the Canadian situation. While emphasizing the complex dynamics of worker resistance and adaptation, the paper briefly examines the shortcomings of Canadian working-class historiography. The paper then explores the significance of interlocking hierarchies and sketches the ways in which this analytical framework can be applied, first by emphasizing gender issues and secondly by emphasizing ethnicity in the Canadian context, particularly in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. (I use the term ‘‘ethnicity’’ broadly in order to avoid using the term ‘‘race’’ as much as possible, so as not to lend credence to the notion that ‘‘race’’ represents a fixed biological category.) In emphasizing ethnicity, the paper focuses first on issues concerning immigrant workers from Asia and then on issues concerning immigrant workers from southern and eastern Europe. --From author's introduction

The article reviews the book, "Working-Class Hollywood: Silent Film and the Shaping of Class in America," Steven J. Ross.

Discusses the socio-political context of the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal's ruling regarding the pay equity complaint of the Public Service Alliance of Canada. The complaint was upheld, but the federal government filed an appeal. Argues for a new understanding of the labour market to counter the devisiveness of the prevailing neo-classical model.

To explain white collar workers' expectations about what unions should do when technological change occurs in the workplace, 2 attitude scales were used. The data indicate that the industries in which employees works as well as their perception about whether computerized technology makes their job rewarding or creates de-skilling are all significant predictors of their attitude regarding a union's decision to accept or resist technological change. Non-union members and managers, in contrast to union members, appear to be concerned about: 1. bread-and-butter issues, and 2. quality of work issues and therefore, are somewhat less likely to feel positive about a union that accepts and helps workers adapt to new office technology.

À partir des fiches du personnel de la Noranda Mines Ltd, l'auteur cherche à cerner les facteurs objectifs qui ont incité quelque 300 travailleurs à déclencher une grève le 12 juin 1934. Comme d'une part, la participation à la grève est inscrite sur les fiches, mais comme d'autre part, la majorité des travailleurs ont refusé de respecter les piquets de grève, deux groupes d'ouvriers-mineurs, les grévistes et les non-grévistes, peuvent ainsi être distingués lors du conflit. Hormis leurs orientations idéologiques, ces travailleurs ont-ils adopté face à la grève une attitude qui peut s'expliquer par leurs caractéristiques socioprofessionnelles? Au centre de cette analyse: les immigrants qui composent la majorité de la main-d'oeuvre. Puisqu'ils sont divisés sur les mérites de la grève, le texte examine l'influence de leur degré d'enracinement au pays sur leur militantisme.

The article reviews the book, "Organisation du travail et gestion de la main-d'oeuvre dans la filière automobile," by Gorgeu, Armelle, René Mathieu and Michel Pialoux.

The article reviews the book, "International and Comparative Employment Relations," edited by Greg J. Bamber and Russell D. Lansbury.

Introduces the international colloquium co-sponsored by Laval University's Industrial Relations Centre and the Canadian Workplace Research Network held in September 1997.

The article reviews the book, "New Forms of Work Organization--Can Europe Realise its Potential?," by EPOC Research Group.

The article reviews the book, "Labor and Urban Politics: Class Conflict and the Origins of Modern Liberalism in Chicago, 1864-97," by Richard Schneirov.