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The article reviews the book, "The Canadian Auto Workers: The Birth and Transformation of a Union," by Sam Gindin.

[Links] the development of union training initiatives and their relationship to state labor market policy to an emerging literature on trade unions in industrial geography. In particular, I examine labor's involvement in state policy in Canada and consider the impact it has had on the direction of these initiatives at the federal, provincial, and sectoral levels, with particular reference to the Canadian Labor Force Development Board (CLFDB), the Ontario Training and Adjustment Board (OTAB), and sectoral training initiatives by the Canadian Auto Workers and the United Steel Workers of America. Researchers in geography and industrial relations have linked post-Fordism to an enhancement of local union strategies and have suggested that one possible configuration of skill development under an emerging Schumpeterian Workfare State would include labor as an important stakeholder-especially at the regional level in a high­ skill/high-wage virtuous circle of development. However, in Canada labor has been organized historically on a largely local level and has been relatively weak in the formulation of state policy, nationally and provincially. If anything, labor has sought to overcome the legacy of localism. Although unions differ in central-local relations, overall they have fought for effective national, provincial, and sectoral representation in these initiatives. Labor has been able to achieve some input into this process, but the success or failure of these programs reflects more on national, provincial, and sectoral institutions, in particular the structure of capital, than on local factors or strategies by labor.

Most people knew [Glen] as an active and seemingly tireless trade union leader, rather than as a historian, but it was his sense of history that shaped his activities. Almost from day one, when he joined the staff of the University of Saskatchewan and became a member of the Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 1975, he was active in union affairs. As his local's grievance chairperson for almost 20 years, he handled over 1,200 grievances. He was later elected president of the local, a position he held for 11 years until his death. He also served -- simultaneously -- as one of CUPE's vice- presidents on the Saskatchewan Federation of Labour (six years), as president of the 22,000-member CUPE Saskatchewan (five years) and on CUPE's National Executive Board in two different positions for the last six years. Glen believed there was more to unions than just collective bargaining and handling grievances. He was a strong proponent of social unionism, of working in solidarity with coalitions of community, anti-poverty, and social action groups. As National CUPE president Judy Darcy noted: "Glen was a trade unionist and a socialist in the true sense of both words. There was no problem too big or too small for Glen -- from defending a member's grievance to fighting for social and economic justice for workers in Canada and around the world." For Glen, the most important people at his funeral would have been his family, as well as the hundreds of working men and women who came to show their love and respect for him. Nonetheless, everyone was pleased to see three Saskatchewan cabinet ministers among the mourners. Each of them had been on the receiving end of Glen's blunt and frequent criticism of some of their government's policies. Despite that, they were there out of respect for his integrity and commitment to working people.

Daniel O'Donoghue was a printer, leader in many early labour organizations, founding member of the Canadian Labour Union, an MPP, and as the first Dominion fair-wages officer, a federal civil servant. ...He promoted a largely American model of labour politics. Based on the notion that labour's goals would best be achieved through established political parties rather than independently, his moderating influence still prevails. --Introduction

English/French abstracts of articles published in the issue.

English/French abstracts of articles in the Fall 1998 issue.

Fund-raising appeal by the Association of Veterans and Friends of the MacKenzie-Papineau Battalion, in co-operation with the British Columbia Federation of Labour and the provincial government, in order to erect a monument to the BC veterans of the Mac-Paps and the International Brigades.

The article reviews the book, "Lesbian Motherhood: An Exploration of Canadian Lesbian Families," by Fiona Nelson.

The article reviews and comments on the film, "Land and Freedom" (1995), directed by Ken Loach, with screenplay by Jim Allen. Concludes that this portrayal of the Spanish Civil War - in which idealistic volunteers including the central character - a young, unemployed, working-class communist from Liverpool - are betrayed by the Stalinists - deserves "five red stars" as cinema, history, and politics.

The article reviews the book, "Le stratège du XXIe siècle : vers une organisation apprenante," by Pierre Dionne and Jean Roger.

The article reviews the book, "Nouvelles formes d'organisation du travail," edited Michel Grant, Paul R. Bélanger and Benoît Lévesque,

Dave Bidini, rhythm guitarist with the Rheostatics, knows all too well what the life of a rock band in Canada involves: storied arenas one tour and bars wallpapered with photos of forgotten bands the next. Zit-speckled fans begging for a guitar pick and angry drunks chucking twenty-sixers and pint glasses. Opulent tour buses riding through apocalyptic snowstorms and cramped vans that reek of dope and beer. Brilliant performances and heart-sinking break-ups. Bidini has played all across the country many times, in venues as far flung and unalike as Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto and the Royal Albert Hotel in Winnipeg. In 1996, when the Rheostatics opened for the Tragically Hip on their Trouble at the Henhouse tour, Bindini kept a diary. In On a Cold Road he weaves his colourful tales about that tour with revealing and hilarious anecdotes from the pioneers of Canadian rock - including BTO, Goddo, the Stampeders, Max Webster, Crowbar, the Guess Who, Triumph, Trooper, Bruce Cockburn, Gale Garnett, and Tommy Chong - whom Bindini later interviewed in an effort to compare their experiences with his. The result is an original, vivid, and unforgettable picture of what is has meant, for the last forty years, to be a rock musician in Canada. --Publisher's description

The article reviews the book, "Technology, Globalisation and Economic Performance," edited by Daniele Archibugi and Jonathan Mitchie.

Le présent article analyse l’efficacité de la procédure de règlement de 1 148 griefs dans neuf municipalités et huit hôtels de la région de Montréal pendant la période d’application de leurs deux dernières conventions collectives. Un bon climat de relations industrielles entre les parties et l’amélioration de ce climat d’une convention collective à l’autre diminuent de façon significative le délai nécessaire pour régler un grief sans que le règlement se fasse à une étape antérieure de la procédure. L’expérience du chef de service accélère le règlement du grief alors que l’expérience du délégué syndical le ralentit. Par contre, certaines caractéristiques de l’emploi, notamment le statut et le quart de travail, influencent à la fois le délai et l’étape du règlement. L’effet sur l’efficacité de la procédure de règlement des griefs d’autres caractéristiques comme l’origine ethnique du plaignant, le type et l’objet du grief sont aussi examinés.

Critiques the trade-and-investment agenda of the Asia Pacific Economic Co-operation summit held in Vancouver in November 1997.

Une recherche récente réalisée par John T. Dunlop et David Weil montre que les entreprises du vêtement sont peu nombreuses à avoir réussi à implanter l’organisation modulaire de travail et que pour y arriver, elles adoptent une stratégie d’ensemble comprenant trois étapes importantes. Comme les exigences de la variante la plus poussée de cette nouvelle forme d’organisation du travail sont élevées, cet article propose d’introduire une étape préparatoire supplémentaire dans le processus pour en augmenter la diffusiion.

Describes the business records of the Ford Motor Company of Canada that were deposited at the University of Windsor Archives in fall 1997, and their value for research on labour and work history.

The article reviews the book, "CLR James: A Political Biography," by Kent Worcester.

In the 1920s and early 1930s the Industrial Workers of the World were a force to be reckoned with among Finnish bushworkers in northern Ontario. Although the Lumber Workers Industrial Union no. 120, affiliated with the Industrial Workers of the World, was smaller than its rival, the Lumber Workers Industrial Union of Canada, affiliated with the Communist Party, the Wobbly union played a major role in bushworker strikes in the mid-1920s and early 1930s. Committed to anti-authoritarianism, decentralization, and rank-and-file initiative, Finnish Wobbly bushworkers were part of an ethnic-based working-class culture in which the economic struggles of the bushworkers were made possible by the tireless work of Finnish Wobbly women, who were the backbone of Wobbly social, cultural, and organizational life in urban centres like Port Arthur. In a 20th century dominated by bureaucracy, legality, and state-directed social programs, the Finnish Wobblies of northern Ontario leave a legacy of dedication to self-education and self-activity in an age so often identified with the demise of the Wobblies and the victory of mass culture.