The objective here is to establish an understanding of the historical record of unions in the province in representing members and influencing public policy. It is a story of accelerating solidarity that can be traced back to the origins of the New Brunswick Federation of Labour, which was established in 1913.

Our features on this theme include the following:

• Hot Cargo, 1979: On 3 July 1979 Saint John longshoremen refused to load a shipment of heavy water for Argentina. It was an act of union solidarity that has not been forgotten. [ more ]
• Presidents of the New Brunswick Federation of Labour: From the first president, James Sugrue in 1913, to the present, we are compiling a set of short biographical pages to help to shed light on the history of labour in the province. [ more ]
• The Fight against Wage Controls, 1975-1976: The Day of Protest against wage controls culminated in a general strike in Saint John on 14 October 1976. This page features excerpts from George Vair's new book, The Struggle against Wage Controls: The Saint John Story, 1975-1976 (Canadian Committee on Labour History, 2006), including photographs from the day's events. [ more ]
• Remembering Lofty MacMillan: Our first blog feature focuses on stories and memories about the late Lofty MacMillan (1917-2006), the New Brunswick labour leader who became one of Canada's most important union organizers. [ more ]
• Solidarity Awards: Every year the New Brunswick Federation of Labour holds a competition for high school, community college and university students giving prizes for essays, poetry and art related to the place of unions in our society. Recent prize essays are reproduced here, in both languages. The application forms for the current competition are also available here. [ more ]