Winnipeg General Strike

The Winnipeg general strike of 1919, although it failed, was one of the most famous and influential strikes in Canadian history.

Labour union leaders argued that many Winnipeg companies had enjoyed enormous profits on World War I contracts, but wages were not high enough, working conditions were dismal and the men had no voice in the shops.

In March 1919 labour delegates from across Western Canada convened in Calgary to form a branch of the "One Big Union", with the intention of earning rights for Canadian workers through a series of strikes. Their goal was to mobilize workers (including those who already belonged to established unions), including all different trades, skill levels, and ethnicities, giving them class solidarity and aggressive leadership. Business leadership controlled the political system in Manitoba, and used force to break the strike and effectively destroy the One Big Union.

The immediate post-war period in Canada was not a time of peace. Social tensions grew as soldiers returned home to find large numbers of immigrants crowded into cities and working at their former jobs. High rates of unemployment among returned soldiers compounded their resentment towards the immigrants. Along with the soldiers, the Spanish flu was brought back from Europe, causing an epidemic within the country.

Canadian Prime Minister Robert Borden attended the Paris Peace Conference that concluded the Great War and was concerned primarily for his government, due to the Russian revolution that began more than a year before the settlement and concern that Bolshevism would potentially spread to North America. Canada’s large immigrant population was thought to hold strong Bolshevist leanings. Government fears of a possible uprising led to increased efforts to control radicals and immigrants at home. Threats and incidents of strike action, which could be considered radical criticism, were thought to require prompt, harsh responses.

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