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Editorial introduction to the theme of the issue.

The article reviews the book, "The Color of Work: The Struggle for Civil Rights in the Southern Paper Industry, 1945-1980," by Timothy J. Minchin.

The article reviews the book, "Plateaus of Freedom: Nationality, Culture, and State Security in Canada, 1940-1960," by Mark Kristmanson.

The article reviews the book, "Nelson Pereira dos Santos," by Darlene J. Sadlier.

[The article examines the 1842 manuscript census] as an appraisal of ethnic weighting in the Montréal labour force, [in order] to estimate the relative sizes of four cultural communities [i.e., French Canadian, Irish Catholic, Irish Protestant, and other Protestant] and the social distances among them. The logic of grouping is schematized...in terms of shared language or religion. Since each community occupied a distinctive niche in the urban economy, it is possible that ethnic differences, often cited as a root of the violence of the 1840s, may have veiled its economic basis. For this reason, the ethnic partition of work, coupled with differential vulnerability of the several communities to economic stress, becomes critical to interpretation of the volatility of the 1840s. --Author's introduction

[We] contend...that the old system [of tribal and peasant exchange practices] did not disappear [with the growth of more complex systems of economic organization and governance, including state regulation, as well as the advent of the Commercial and Industrial Revolutions in Britain in the late 18th and early 19th centuries]. Rather, [the old system] evolved over time into what we now call "the rural informal economy:" sets of economic activities that operate outside the formal legalised structures of a nation's capitalist economy. By this we mean that they are based in community or family reciprocities which are usually found in combination with what we might today classify as occupational pluralism, but which initially involved the utilization of a range of ecological niches to provide year-round sustenance. They are, therefore, of necessity both place-specific in operation, and rural. We argue that this "ecological pluralism" — an essential component of the original system—remains a vital part of the rural informal economies of the world today. ---Authors' introduction

In spite of the long-term existence of joint committees, injury rates appear to be increasing in the healthcare sector. The purpose of this study was to deliver and evaluate a province-wide joint committee (JC) education program for healthcare institutions BC. The joint committee education program was designed with input from labour and management representatives and expert advice from compensation, union, and human resources consultants. The training program was designed to: 1) ensure that committee members fully understood their roles and responsibilities as outlined under the Workers' Compensation Act and Regulations, 2) increase the problem solving skills of committee members, 3) improve the committee's ability in identifying and resolving health and safety concerns in their workplace. Between June and December 2000, 1,206 JC members, (employed at 262 different healthcare facilities), were trained. An evaluation survey, designed as a retrospective before and after study, to evaluate whether the JC training sessions had produced changes in committee functioning was conducted from 7 to 15 months after the training (during the period July 2001 to September 2001) by two trained telephone interviewers. While the level of JC functioning was quite high most institutions prior to training the evaluation survey found large and statistically significant improvements in JC functioning. A 39.5% increase in the proportion of respondents reporting “high” marks for JC effectiveness in identifying hazards and an increase of 50% reporting “high” marks for understanding the JCs role were observed. Increases in the proportion of respondents reporting “high” marks for accuracy of JC minutes, specificity of recommendations, and perhaps most importantly, degrees of cooperation among JC members were in the 20 percent range. IN conclusion this province-wide training of JC members in healthcare institutions increased the functioning of JCs in key areas.

In an age of globalization, there is a growing perception that state regulatory instruments may be an inadequate means of regulating firm conduct. Increasingly, scholars are evaluating how corporate codes of conduct may operate as regulatory mechanisms. This article examines competing codes of conduct in the forest sector. Through a detailed case study of code adoption, innovation, and diffusion in the forest sector, focusing on mechanisms of vertical, horizontal and competitive diffusion, it is found that non-governmental organization (NGO) codes have placed competitive pressure to adopt higher standards on competing schemes. However, NGO schemes have been limited in constructing fluid markets for their own goods. The article examines which strategies for codes regimes are most likely to diffuse high standards throughout contemporary markets.

The article reviews the book, "Spectres of 1919: Class and Nation in the Making of the New Negro," by Barbara Foley.

The article reviews the book, "introduction aux relations industrielles," edited by Jean Boivin.

À partir d’une revue de la littérature anglo-saxonne, l’article offre une synthèse des principaux écrits sur les théories du syndicalisme. Il présente la première vague théorique où le syndicalisme est considéré soit comme un agent de la révolution, de transformation ou d’accommodement du capitalisme. Dans la seconde vague théorique, le syndicalisme est plutôt considéré comme un acteur interagissant avec l’employeur. C’est donc en regard de l’existence ou non d’un conflit fondamental d’intérêts entre les employeurs et les travailleurs que les théories s’articuleront. La pertinence contemporaine des diverses contributions théoriques est également analysée. Les auteurs concluent que, parmi les approches de la première vague, la théorie du syndicalisme d’affaires demeure la plus éclairante bien que cette forme de syndicalisme comporte aujourd’hui une dimension d’engagement social dépassant les milieux de travail. Mais la régulation des conditions de travail par la négociation collective demeure cependant la fonction première de l’activité syndicale.

The article reviews the book, "Uncle Sam and Us: Globalization, Neoconservatism, and the Canadian State," by Stephen Clarkson.

The article reviews the book, "Le syndicalisme québécois : deux siècles d’histoire," by Jacques Rouillard.

The article reviews the book, "The New Left Revisited," edited by John McMillan and Paul Buhle.

The article reviews the book, "The Life of an Unknown: The Rediscovered World of a Clog Maker in 19th-Century France," by Alain Corbin.

The book, "Trade Unions in Europe: Meeting the Challenge," edited by Deoborah Foster and Peter Scott, is reviewed.

The book, "Employment Stability in an Age of Flexibility: Evidence from Industrialized Countries," edited by Peter Auer and Sandrine Cazes.

This article presents an empirical research on the determinants of employees' participation in non-mandatory training offered by their employer. The analysis model identified two groups of determinants, i.e. socio-demographic (age, gender, family responsibilities and education level) and employment-related (organizational tenure, hierarchical position and employment status). Participants, mostly female, were employees from a large Canadian service organization. Results showed that age negatively influenced participation, that women participated more than men, and that the education level was negatively related to participation. Findings also indicated a non-linear relationship between organizational tenure and participation, and that the probability of participation in non-mandatory training increased with the hierarchical position occupied. Family responsibilities and employment status were not found to be significant predictors of participation. [PUBLICATON ABSTRACT]

Stuart Jamieson was the author of the first book in English on the subject of Canadian industrial relations, Industrial Relations in Canada, published in 1957. This classic work was concise, clearly written and notable for its analysis of Canadian industrial relations in the broader North American context. These two books were only part of Jamieson's contributions to industrial relations. His dissertation documented the struggle of American (and Canadian) farm workers to achieve representation. Stuart Jamieson taught economics and sociology at University of British Columbia from 1945 until his retirement in 1980.