CU PE’ S SYM P AT HY ST R I KES I N BRITI S H C O LUMBIA, OCTOBER 2005: RAISING TH E BA R FOR SO LIDARIT Y

Abstract

FromOctober 7-23, 2005,the strike bythe 38,000-strong British ColumbiaTeachers’ Federation (BCTF)was the “main event”inBC labour relations. Teachersdemonstratedenormoussolidarity and determination toachieve afairnegotiatedsettlement thatthey could put to avote. The focusofthispaperisnot the BCTF strikeitselfbutthe remarkablesympathy strike action organizedin supportof BCTF,primarilybytheBCdivisionofCUPE.Suchworkeractionishighlyunusual.Sincethe1940ssympathy strike action has been illegaland extremely rare. This paper setsCUPE-BC’sstrikes insupport of BCTFin the context ofthe legal frameworkestablished over halfacentury agoand the decline of sympathy strikes that followed. It then summarizes theevents of October 2005and examines the effects and significanceof the strikesand whatmade them possible.It concludes witha reflection onthe implications oftheseevents forthe labour movement. The analysis here isshapedby the perspective thatpublic sectorunionsare best able to resist hostile governments when theyadopt amilitantand highlydemocraticapproach thataimstobuildabroad socialmovement, sometimes referred toassocialmovementunionism(C