From Mr. Freeman

I have not received the check yet but I am sure it will come. Mail between parts of the U.S. and Canada seem to be still carried by pony express riders. 

 

I know that there are many Mexican nationals in your part of the world, but it has only been very recently that Mexicans have settled in Canada. However, the question of “ethnic workers” as Canadians would express it, during the 1946 Stelco strike is interesting.

 

There were many Italians, Ukranians, Poles and others of southern or eastern European origin working at Stelco in ‘46. Almost to a man the ethnic workers were strong union supporters. The reason for this was that Stelco management openly discriminated against non-Anglo Saxon workers. They got the worst jobs, were paid less and were never promoted. That was one of the major reasons for the strike.

 

I often wondered whether there would have been a strike at all, if it was not for the union solidarity of the ethnic workers. The scabs at Stelco in ‘46 tended to be workers with a British origin. That is because they were given preferential treatment.

 

Ethnicity and class have played important roles in Canadian, as well as American and Mexican history.

Steel Mill Workers

The term steel mill worker can encompass a number of the positions at a mill including pourer, caster, furnace operator, inspector, machine setter, steel lather, millwright and welder. Unfortunately, many of these steel mill workers have suffered workplace exposure to asbestos, which can cause deadly mesothelioma cancer. Asbestos has a unique resistance to heat that led to its usage throughout the high temperature environments of steel mills. When inhaled, asbestos fibers can lead to a number of health problems including asbestosis and numerous cancers like mesothelioma, lung, esophageal, gastrointestinal, laryngeal, and pharyngeal. Steel mill workers employed from about 1940 to 1980 are at the highest risk for possible asbestos exposure because their day-to-day brought them in contact with a number of asbestos-containing products and materials. Unfortunately for steel mill workers, it was often the clothing designed to protect them from heat and fire that ultimately put them at risk for asbestos exposure.

Cast & Crew of GLORY DAYS

1.  All parts are not set in stone. We may shift parts around if understudies become better than actors, or if our needs change.
2. Memorize pages 1-20 by Sunday, January 6 at 2PM - down to the ensemble chant

This was a difficult decision.  Accents need to be perfected - no NY or Brooklyn accents.  Listen to You Tube accent lessons.  We will have Polish accent tapes arriving after the new year.  I have Italian CD's now.
Marie and Louis need to be Italian.   Nate is Polish.  We need to ask Mr. Freeman about other nationalities.

I need pictures of steel mills and what we might build for the mill itself.  Things to attach to pylons and ladders.

1.    Billy, a  young single worker	Young, spontaneous, passionate, does not think before he speaks or acts. (18 or 19)	Hayden
2.    Nate, a STELCO worker	A hard worker who loves Rose – has several children.  He has a drinking problem and often neglects his family to strike for the union. (mid thirties) Polish	Tucker Understudy - Reagan
3.    Rose, Nate’s wife	She cleans houses and has been both mother and father during the strike. She resents the time Nate has spent away from home. (mid thirties)	Allison Understudy - Lindsey
4.    Marie, Louis’s girlfriend and later his wife	Self centered at first.  Good natured.  She supports Louis. She is a little bit of a flirt. (late 20’s)Italian	Savannah Understudy - Avery
5.    Alice, Reg’s wife	She is the woman behind the man.  She has already been involved in unions.  She is really the driving force behind Reg.  early thirties	Hannah Understudy - Amber
6.    Reg	early thirties  He organizes the union with Alice’s help.  He is torn between his wife and his brother, Frank.  He is level headed.	Jared
7.    Louis, Marie’s husband	(late 20’s) Italian He supports Reg.  He looks after Billy as does Nate.  Louis is more level headed than Nate and Billy.	Graham
8.    Frank, brother of Reg/ Striker	Late 30’s – he is loyal to the company even though he realizes that the company is not acting in the best interest of the workers.  He is smart. He is the father figure to Reg and Alice. He is a scab.	Ty
9.    A Relief Worker /striker May be a woman or man	No nonsense person Must be expressive – body and face.	Paige Understudy - Mara
10. Man Applying for Relief (shoe)/striker	Later a striker Must be expressive – body and face.	Mac
11. Hugh Hilton, President of STELCO / Striker	Hard headed – 40’s-50’s   He only cares about profit – nothing else.   He has no sympathy for the workers.  He must be strong.	Carson
12. Olive Kelly, STELCO’s Public Relation Assistant	She is a charmer, intelligent, chic, and can see both sides of the picture – company and workers.	Michelle Understudy - Cheyanne
13. Photographer/striker	Quirky	Nathan
14. Striker	Must be expressive – body and face.	Cody
15.  Nora Francis Henderson	Stodgy, older, tough – may eliminate this part.	Lindsey – but part may be cut (we still need 15 bodies)

Lights Stage Lights	Parker Devon Kayla Cole
Sound	Parker Cris
Makeup	Madison
Prop master	Isaac
Stage Manager	Alyssa
Assistant Stage Mgrs.	Kayla, Abbey

Auditions

Auditions are Thursday evening at 7PM in the auditorium.  We have moved it from 7:30 because Jayce Moore is having surgery.  With this play, the chemistry between actors is paramount, and we need for Jared to read for several men and we need women to read with him.

This year we will not put Jared opposite his relatives.  Savannah, you may  breathe a sigh of relief.

Be familiar with the play.  You will be reading at least twice.  You may not get the part you want. We have 30 people vying for 15 acting positions and five crew positions.  We will have understudies.  The understudy role will be important this year. Once you receive a part or position, it may not be yours to keep.

I care deeply about each one of you. Some of you I have had since you were running around with swords in Alice and Wonderland. With the rest of you, it seems I have had you that long as well.  But, as in all teamwork, not everyone gets a starting role.  I will judge what I see the day of auditions.  Mrs. Giffis, and perhaps Mark and Zach will help me.  Greg may help as well.  It is a tough decision.

We will have a rubric that we will use during auditions.  I do NOT want to hear TEXAS accents.  Do not memorize anything, but be familiar enough with the dialogue that you do not stumble over words.

Character

Projection

Clarity

Stage Presence

Overall knowledge of script

More Comments on the Play from the Packets

From Alyssa -Billy was naive, but I think by the end, he learned what it meant to be a man and what it meant to be part of a community.

From Hannah - On the non-speaking role of a striker -The small things are some of the biggest parts that add to a play and make a performance stand out more than others.

From Carson - all of his character descriptions were good - however, his description of Mr. Hilton was great -Hilton is the antagonist who shows the spirit of the top tier in the Guilded Age: Profits rule his decisions.

From Allison -I love the satisfaction of seeing a simple idea become a script and then seeing that become a performance.  It's art.

Foreigner

EVERYONE	DICTION – SLOWER STEP ON LINES Don’t just say the lines – give the audience the meaning through your emotions. Look over lines Always be involved in what is happening. Don’t lose your character. The dialogue and emotions are one level: they should be varied. Watch who is sitting and standing or sitting on different levels. Adjust yourself. Quiet backstage. Hayden is the only one with energy. Everyone needs to be at his level. What is going on when the KKK runs away? LOUDER QUIET BACKSTAGE If you are supposed to be scared, be scared. LEVELS Look interested in who is speaking.  Focus on them. Energy level is down. Stay in character. During the furniture move, speak – be anxious. You are trying to keep the KKK out. LISTEN TO MAC while he is getting sent off.  Some be amused, some are mad at him. REACT TO EXPLOSION. Intermission – On page 21. After Charlie says, “Frankenstein, yes…” Keys – Amber Everyone’s entrances – they should be wet – except for Lindsey and Avery.  I WANT WATER!!!! Rifle bags – Cody and Nelsons Wheelbarrow - Hannah
REAGAN	React to what is happening with facial expressions. More reactions
GRAHAM	Diction.  After Betty knows it is you, take the mask off.
COLE	LOUDER
SAVANNAH	Learn your lines
HANNAH	Learn your lines
MAC	Be sure to take Catherine’s reaction more to heart.  Are you angry, frustrated, sad?
TUCKER
CODY	Be sure that we can see you.  Angle bench out if someone is beside you. Be a creepy KKK guy.
MUSIC	Music should go through transitions Be careful that we can hear actors over the sound. If you can’t hear them, no one can Music is too loud.
Lights	Be on time – know that is hard when we haven’t gone through the play.

Jared Moore, Allison Simpson, & Paige Williams

"It's not about getting roles, it's about being with the ensemble and creating the show. " Jared

"A non speaking role of a striker would be important because this shows that there were a lot more people and a lot more stories that are untold.  The non-speaking strikers represents all those untold stories of all the other people who were affected by the strike.  We need to make the audience realize that there were more people impacted by the strike than just the families that we follow during the course of the play." Paige

"In Glory Days, every striker counted.  It was one more person to stand up for what he/she believed in.  It's very important to portray that in the play.  T he more the people, the better the impact strikers had. "  Allison 

I believe it's important to realize the other side of the situation also. Mr. Hilton and the 'scabs' are the antagonists in the play and even in the actual history of the Stelco Strike. But before you conclude that they are evil, cruel people, realize this; they were only doing what was best for themselves, just like the strikers were. Mr. Hilton seems to be a very tough man. He didn't prefer weakness. And he was strictly business. All this mushy gooshy union stuff seemed like a horrible idea to this business man. Hilton could not see any growth in his business from a union. He didn't have thick, black, arched eyebrows and steam did not come from his ears. He simply could not see the postive aspect in having a union. And of course some of the 'scabs' wouldn't join the strike. Most already had good pay, hours and they certainly weren't treated unfairly due to thier ethnicity. It is so much easier for us to look back and see the immoral treatment of ethnic workers and conclude on The Hamilton Spectator - an article about the 1946 Strike  From Allison

The Hamilton Spectator - an article about the 1946 Strike

THE HAMILTON SPECTATOR

It was supposed to be a new beginning. Six years of bitter war had finally ended. Soldiers were returning home. Hamiltonians were optimistic about the future and a baby boom was brewing.

The year was 1946. It was the city's Centennial and "the show of a century" was planned for the first week of July to mark "100 years of progress."

But there were disconcerting rumblings that threatened to spoil the party. Tensions were escalating between unionists and Stelco management through the early months of the year.

Then on March 16, a grisly discovery was made on the side of the Mountain.

The Spectator reported: "Clothed only in an undershirt and shorts, the torso of an unidentified man with the head, legs and arms missing, was found . . . one-half mile from Albion Falls, about 10 o'clock this morning.

"The gruesome find was made by a group of children who were out in the country for a Saturday morning hike ..."

It was the first of countless news accounts, over the weeks and months ahead, about the infamous John Dick murder case. And if there was a "show of the century" in 1946, it turned out to be the Evelyn Dick murder trial -- not the city's Centennial.

Margaret Houghton, a local history author and archivist at Hamilton Public Library Special Collections, says 1946 was a pivotal year for the city. In the gathering storm of labour turmoil and macabre murder revelations, the city lost its innocence and matured at the same time.

"Hamilton had become a completely different city (by 1946)," she says. "Before the war, Hamilton was a very parochial community. But by the end of the war, the city had become a world-class steelmaker and manufacturer ... and attitudes were changing."

Especially changed were young men who had gone off to war and were returning to their families and jobs.

"When they came back to Hamilton they were unwilling to accept the working conditions they previously tolerated," says Houghton.

Labour historian Craig Heron says the war raised "a kind of rhetoric of democracy that was quite remarkable. People who worked in factories would ask 'why did we fight for democracy overseas when we don't have it on the job?'

"In some ways the war was a kind of catalyst for the union movement. It gave a lot of legitimacy to the idea of industrial democracy."

For many veterans, who were returning to their steelmaking jobs after being overseas, it was a case of coming back from one war to fight another.

Steelworkers' union members at Stelco pressed for higher wages, a 40-hour work week and a requirement by the company to regularly deduct dues on behalf of the union.

On July 15, the steelworkers officially walked off the job to launch a bitter 81-day feud that is seen by historians to be one of the most important labour-management battles in Canadian history. The strike severely divided the community between those who supported the strikers -- including then Mayor Sam Lawrence -- and those who did not.

Replacement workers camped out at Stelco, while many had their homes spray-painted with the words "scab" and other taunts.

And while the Stelco strike got most of the attention, union members from Westinghouse, Firestone and The Spectator also took to the streets.

By mid-July nearly 20 per cent of the city's industrial workforce was on strike with thousands more laid off because of plant shutdowns.

"Everybody knew someone who was on strike that summer," says Heron. "They were prolonged events that drew a lot of community participation. On the picket lines people came out and donated their time and their food. There were dances. There was even a wedding on the Stelco picket line. Pete Seeger showed up and sang at one point."

While Lawrence supported the strikers because he said he was "a union man first and chief magistrate second," other members of city council were vehemently opposed to the union. Controller Nora Frances Henderson was so incensed that she made a public display of walking through a picket line to show her indignation. The picketers stepped slowly aside and let her pass without incident.

"I will not bow to mob rule," she said. To which, strikers later said: "We'll hang Nora Frances from the sour apple tree." Luckily, it was just a threat.

Heron says, "The whole community was mobilized and politicized in 1946." And animosities between strikers and "scabs" continue to this day.

McMaster University's John Weaver, a local history expert, says: "1946 was a hopping year. That's for sure.

"The year must have begun with a fair bit of optimism with it being the first full year after the war. It was the end of a protracted period of war and the Depression that was pretty dismal."

But with the labour upheaval and the economic adjustment of the city moving to peacetime production, he said, it would take Hamilton a couple more years to enjoy postwar prosperity.

Retired McMaster University history professor Chuck Johnston was 20 years old in 1946. He was a McMaster student who marvelled at the events that were going on around him.

"I remember the Centennial parade down the main street and the mayor was in an open car. They had bands and things ... I was one of several hundred who gathered in the East End to watch it. People gathered all over the city."

He doesn't recall labour turmoil affecting the Centennial festivities that took place from July 1 to 7. Every day saw a full slate of events that included everything from softball tournaments to marching bands and fireworks.

City Hall was decked out with a huge billboard that contrasted views of the city from the Mountain from 1846 and 1946 under the "100 years of progress" slogan.

Unions - from Bill Freeman's book -1005: Political Life in a Local Union

"'The strength of Local 1005 is that for years there have been stubborn and bullheaded men who have devoted their time and risked their jobs for their fellow workers.  That's what makes a union.  You know you've got to give it to the old-timers.  They fought for us all.  They made it happen.  They know that we stand for something in the trade union movement--- that we've got a history behind us, and that's important. From a 1005 activist.'

It was in 1945 that Local 1005 of the United Steelworkers of America became the official bargaining agent for the hourly rated employees at the Hamilton Works of the Steel Company of Canada, but this union local did not emerge on the scene fully grown, ready to defend the rights of the company's employees.  In part it was the result of the conscious struggles of the workers int he plant going back at least 35 years.  It was also the result of a broader class struggle that emerged in Canada as the country rapidly industrialized int he latter part of the 19th and early 20th centuries. 

After it's creation in 1901, U.S. Steel controlled 3/5ths of the whole American industry and was the world's first billion dollar corporation.  Union organization in the Hamilton Steel and Iron Company prior to the Stelco merger of 1910 was slow and strongly resisted by management.  Years later, Tom McClure, a one-time president of Local 1005 wrote:

'As far as can be learned, organization in the early days of the plant was more or less of a spontaneous nature.... The rolling men and puddlers were paid on a sliding scale based on the average of the production over the previous sixty day period.  Sometimes a steep increase in the selling price of steel was not reflected int he pay envelope.  Tongs were banged, the whistle blown, the mill stopped rolling, the men marched to the office, and as a general rule, the appropriate changes were made in the rates of pay.  An exception to the rule occurred in 1906 when a short strike resulted in the upward adjustment of rates of pay called for by a sharp rise in the selling price.  the strikers were told that it was not necessary for them to organize into a union to be certain of getting their just due.'  

This description shows a type of direct rank-and-file militancy.  Whenever there was a grievance, "the tongs were banged, the whistle blown, the mill stopped rolling, the men marched tot he office."  Its success depended on a shop floor solidarity among the workers that could not be ignored by the company, rather than on an established relationship between the two parties. After the Stelco merger of 1910 - see Glory Days history - the company was in an excellent position to control its markets.

The year 1919 was a time of radical union activity in Canada.  As Stuart Jamieson points out, "One of the most important factors underlying the mounting unrest of the late war (World War I) and immediate post war years was the inflationary price spiral.  The cost of living jumped by 8% in 1916 and escalated to 13 1/2 % in 1918."  But wages had inflated very slowly. On September 22, 1919, 365,000 American steelworkers went on strike in fifty cities across America. Mills were kept open by black and Mexican strikebreakers.  David Brody commented, "Nothing weakened the resolve of weary strikers more than the sight of smoke rising from the mills, and the sound of whistles announcing the change of the shift."  Men drifted back to work,and finally, in January,t he union admitted defeat. It was during this bitter struggle that unionization finally began at Stelco. 
Working conditions in Stelco's Hamilton mills remained grim.  Ten and twelve hour days were the rule, heavy labour was a common feature of many of the jobs, the heat in some of the mills was difficult to bear, and safety features were almost non existence. 

With the beginning of the Depression in 1929 and 1930, the Amalgamated Association began to lose support.  As the price of steel became lower, the sliding scale of wages sank with it, and the Western Sheet and Tin Producers forced the AA to accept even lower rates.  Stelco allowed wages to sink in the sheet mill to the lowest level in years.   As a result of the Depression and low wages, lost jobs, the Stelco sheet mill workers allowed their charter to lapse on October 4, 1932. 

Wages for Stelco workers sank even further.  No one in the sheet mill was now a member of the union, so they did not receive the AA journal to check their wages against the scale.  It was some time before the news reached them that the rate of pay Stelco was giving them was lower than the scale.  

The Local 1005 was started again in 1934, but initially very little was accomplished.  Meetings were poorly attended, and the company ignored the new union.  Following the 1935 strike, Stelco announced the Employee Representation Plan.  The plan called for the establishment of a works council made up of ten employees elected by secret ballot from each of the plant's divisions and of ten company appointees. The chairman and secretary were provided by the company.  The council would meet monthly, and any issue could be discussed that was brought forward by the representatives.  Appeals could be referred to the president of the company, whose decision would be final."

From Mr. Freeman

Olive Kelly would obviously be of Irish origin. The question of ethnicity was very important in the strike. There were many workers of Italian or eastern European origin working at Stelco at that time. They had the worst jobs and they were discriminated against. They were the strongest union supporters. There were also a number of British immigrants who worked at the plant and they were pro-company. The play mentions that but does not spend a lot of time dealing with it.

 

Perhaps the students should know that in American steel plants in the 1930s and 40s, workers of African origin were discriminated against. They had the the hottest and dirtiest jobs and rarely got promoted. The pattern of discrimination in Canada was a little different but fundamentally the same. This grievance played a major role in the creation of the union in Hamilton.

 

Fiddle music in Canada tends to be rural, and a cultural expression of people of Scottish or Irish origin. It currently is going through a great resurgence. There could well have been fiddle music on the picket line—maybe a visiting musician who supported the strike. But people in Hamilton of that era loved the big band sound. Dancing was very popular and there were big dance halls in Hamilton where steelworkers liked to take their girlfriends and wives.

From Couch - Mr. Freeman is an activist trying to make the world a better place.  I had mentioned 

migrant workers, and this is why he included the information about seasonal workers. 

Seasonal agricultural workers are among the most exploited workers in Canada and the United States. Even today wages are terrible and the facilities at the farms are usually rudimentary bunk houses.

 

Canada has taken to importing agricultural workers from Mexico and Jamaica on temporary work permits. The workers are paid less than minimum wage and work under the most trying conditions. The men come and stay in Canada for upwards of 6 months and have little contact with their families. 

 

Canadian unions have been active in these communities trying to organize the workers but not much has been achieved. To their credit the unions  have brought the issues to the attention of Canadian authorities and the public, but little more than expressions of moral outrage has been achieved. The farmers have political influence and they are very resistant to change.

 

Steel mills are notoriously noisy. The sounds of the blast of the furnaces, the clang of steel upon steel, shouts of the men, loud machinery, safety whistles to warn the men of danger, all of this and more are part of the normal operations of mills.

 

In the original production of Glory Days Charles Cosins created a sound track as an overture for the play that captured the sounds of the mill. It was very effective.  You would need big speakers and a good sound engineer but it would be possible to recreate something like that.  There also are moments in the first act that mimic action in the mill. It would be great to have sounds of the mill overplay that action.

 

During the fight scenes of the strike there should be shouts and general chaos. The fights usually were gangs of men trying to stop trucks going through the picket lines or battles at night between workers and scabs. It was chaotic, noisy and violent.

 

Bill Freeman
www.billfreeman.ca

DEFYING THE LAW - a film about the STELCO Strike

Defying the Law

Directed by Marta Nielsen-Hastings

Reviewed by Pam Joyner

“Defying the Law chronicles the 1946 illegal strike of Steelworkers at the Stelco steel plant and the impact it had on our history. As a new generation of Hamilton steelworkers challenges a profit-hungry corporation, this documentary shows how a unity fight can win.

The 1946 strike became the lynchpin in the city of Hamilton. The community was described as having “strike fever” in the summer of 1946 as almost half the population was involved in the steel strike and other striking workplaces. The steel strike, however, was central to bringing positive changes for the Canadian working class as a whole. Many believe it to be the birth of the modern labour movement.

Strike origins

There was a great deal of paternalism and fear in worker-management relations that angered many. At one point, Hugh Hilton, president of Stelco, sent letters to every worker telling them to "leave it to dad. He'd take care of us." One worker said this was his final push to join the union.

Racism was also frequently used to remove ethnic workers from skilled jobs and replace them with those of Anglo Saxon background.

Prior to the strike, workers at the steel plants worked a 48-hour workweek with no sick days and no benefits. They had to work 15 years to just to earn one week of paid vacation per year. The working conditions were often hot and difficult in the open-hearth blast furnaces and rolling mills.

A strike was called demanding a 19.5 cent per hour raise, more vacation time, and union recognition. Union security became the fundamental issue in the strike. The company refused to negotiate with the union or allow workers who wanted to join the union have their dues deducted from their wages.

As workers were fighting to improve working conditions, they faced not only their employer, but the federal government that took the company's side. In an attempt to halt the impending strike, the MacKenzie King government seized the plants under the War Measures Act, which was still in effect. Workers were threatened with fines and imprisonment if they struck. These threats backfired and simply added fuel to the fire.

Solidarity

The steelworkers had both the support of Hamilton's mayor and the surrounding community. Community members prepared food for the picket line. Families came out with their children in the evenings to participate and listen to music from the picket tent. The Congress of Industrial Oganizations (CIO), which had an almost legendary quality, brought up folk singers Pete Seger and Woody Gunthrie to inspire the strikers.

Several stores in the community also supported the strikers by refusing serve the scabs and companies such as Canada Packers refused to sell meat to Stelco for the scabs’ meals.

Solidarity was the key to keeping the pickets strong and steady, and also to stemming the inevitable media against the strike. The Hamilton Spectator, Globe and Mail and Telegram all ran stories in sympathy with the scabs and their families who were facing pressure from the strike not to return to the plant.

From past to present

The strike was settled after 86 days. Although the 3.5 cent wage increase was much smaller than the original demand, strikers won two weeks vacation after five years of work. More importantly, the union won basic union security and all returning workers joined the union after the strike.

It seems there is no time in history that governments and corporations have been willing to offer up a fair share of their profits without a fight. During the current war on workers, it is very inspiring to look back on one of the most successful fights for better working conditions in Canadian history. This was true after the Second World War as much as it is today with our governments more than happy to spend money on war than in helping their own citizens find jobs and affordable education.

Currently, our sisters and brothers in Hamilton have been locked-out by the new plant owner U.S. Steel after challenging deep cuts to their pension and benefits from the company. A brilliant solidarity rally took place in January with numerous unions busing their members, much more needs to be done to win this struggle. Solidarity is the key as the strike of 1946 shows.”

STELCO During 30's & 40's

Stelco in 1930's

1940's Mill Workers

Strikers in 1946

Strikers

Stelco Timeline

1929: Stelco increased its iron and steel capacity by 50 per cent.

1930s: The Depression

 1936: Local 1005 was formed at Stelco by the Steel Workers Organizing Committee. 

1940s: Winning a better deal

1945: With the end of the Second World War, Hamilton's mills produced about half of Canada's steel. A contract with the United Steelworkers was signed at Stelco and Hugh Hilton became president. Under his leadership, as president until 1957 and chairman until 1966, Stelco tripled in size.

1946: The 1945 Stelco contract expired and with Hilton famously declaring he would oppose the union “until my dying breath,” Local 1005 mounted its historic first strike. Starting in July, it ran for 85 days. The union asked for a wage hike, closed-shop agreement and automatic check-off of union dues. The real issue, however, was a successful demand for recognition of the union. That victory set the stage for a long history of winning improvements in wages and working conditions.

How to be a Follower or to post a Comment

There are several ways to follow a blog. One of the easiest ways is to visit a blog that has added the Following widget and click on the "Join this site" button under the "Followers" widget.  After becoming a follower, students can comment on each post.  

Students at school are able to comment on the blog at school. Major grades will be taken from the comments. 

November 21

"Glory Days  by Bill Freeman describes STELCO in the 1930's and early '40's as a workplace rank with discrimination and favouritism. The workers lived under a form of tyranny where the boss was king and their needs and wishes were simply disregarded... the common belief of management of the day was that workers needed to be disciplined and tough foremen were an absolute necessity if companies were to survive.  Under that system, workers had no power and no means to be able to struggle against that tyranny.  The greatest achievement of unions is that they give the workers the means to challenge this system, and this led to a change of attitudes to the point where today no company, unionized or non-unionized, would dare treat their workforce in such autocratic and discriminatory ways." - from the introduction by Bill Freeman

Students who are interested in the production should go to You Tube for the 2010 Vancouver Olympics Opening Ceremony; the Australian Opening Ceremony; and the London Olympics Opening Ceremony with the Industrial Revolution.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PDORgtOSiFY&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tX4QJ57QXKo