George Smith, 1894-1938
George Smith is one of the two names listed on the steelworkers’ monument for the year 1938. Smith was 44 years old at the time of his death. His daughter remembers the last words that he spoke to her before his death; “So long, Margaret,” he said as he left his family home on Bay Street in Whitney Pier for the 3 o’clock shift at the steel plant on 26 June. [1] The steel company, now called Dosco, had changed from the 12-hour shift to the eight-hour shift in 1935, which is the reason that Smith was able to spend the morning at home with his family. That afternoon, he was helping to repair the No. 1 blast furnace. While walking along the scaffolding, Smith was overcome by gas and fell 35 feet to the ground. His skull was crushed, but he managed to survive two more days in the city hospital. Smith never regained consciousness and died on 28 June 1938. [2]
The 1930s was the decade that labour organization finally succeeded at the
Sydney steel plant. Although the Depression had massively increased the labour pool
and taken leverage away from the steelworkers, workers’ representatives on the plant
council began machinating over the creation of another union. The AAISTW had
declined in popularity at the steel plant since the 1923 strike, and by 1930 there were no
members remaining. A 15 per cent wage cut in 1932, poor safety conditions, and the
continuation of the 12-hour shift resulted in renewed discussions of unionism among the
workers.
In 1935, several workers on the plant council began organizing for the creation of a union. Nearly two per cent of the workforce showed up for the first open meeting of the new Independent Steelworkers’ Union of Nova Scotia. The company responded with a ten per cent wage increase, followed soon after by two more increases of 7.5 per cent. This was done in an attempt to sway support from the union by proving that the plant council was able to act in the interest of the workers. It had the opposite effect, however, and union membership ballooned to more than 3,000 members within a few months. The following year, the independent union gained a Steelworkers’ Organizing Committee (SWOC) charter under the auspices of the Committee for Industrial Organization (CIO). The steelworkers were now officially united as Lodge 1064 SWOC. [3] In 1937, the Nova Scotian government passed the N.S. Trade Union Act, which demanded that employers recognize any union chosen by a majority of employees. This forced Dosco to recognize the union. [4] SWOC became the United Steelworkers of America in 1942.
Footnotes
[1] Cape Breton Post, 29 April 2007.
[2] Cape Breton Post, 28 April 2007; Cape Breton Post, 29 April 2007; Historical Vital Statistics, “Province of Nova Scotia Certificate of Registration of Death – George Smith,” Book 177, 1938.
[3] Craig Heron, The Canadian Labour Movement: A Short History (Toronto: James Lorimer & Company Publishers, 1989), 72;
[4] T. Stephen Henderson, Angus L. Macdonald: A Provincial Liberal (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2007), 78.
The 1930s was the decade that labour organization finally succeeded at the
Sydney steel plant. Although the Depression had massively increased the labour pool
and taken leverage away from the steelworkers, workers’ representatives on the plant
council began machinating over the creation of another union. The AAISTW had
declined in popularity at the steel plant since the 1923 strike, and by 1930 there were no
members remaining. A 15 per cent wage cut in 1932, poor safety conditions, and the
continuation of the 12-hour shift resulted in renewed discussions of unionism among the
workers.
In 1935, several workers on the plant council began organizing for the creation of a union. Nearly two per cent of the workforce showed up for the first open meeting of the new Independent Steelworkers’ Union of Nova Scotia. The company responded with a ten per cent wage increase, followed soon after by two more increases of 7.5 per cent. This was done in an attempt to sway support from the union by proving that the plant council was able to act in the interest of the workers. It had the opposite effect, however, and union membership ballooned to more than 3,000 members within a few months. The following year, the independent union gained a Steelworkers’ Organizing Committee (SWOC) charter under the auspices of the Committee for Industrial Organization (CIO). The steelworkers were now officially united as Lodge 1064 SWOC. [3] In 1937, the Nova Scotian government passed the N.S. Trade Union Act, which demanded that employers recognize any union chosen by a majority of employees. This forced Dosco to recognize the union. [4] SWOC became the United Steelworkers of America in 1942.
Footnotes
[1] Cape Breton Post, 29 April 2007.
[2] Cape Breton Post, 28 April 2007; Cape Breton Post, 29 April 2007; Historical Vital Statistics, “Province of Nova Scotia Certificate of Registration of Death – George Smith,” Book 177, 1938.
[3] Craig Heron, The Canadian Labour Movement: A Short History (Toronto: James Lorimer & Company Publishers, 1989), 72;
[4] T. Stephen Henderson, Angus L. Macdonald: A Provincial Liberal (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2007), 78.