Labor Union Response to Diversity in Canada and the United States

Industrial Relations, Vol. 39, Issue 3, July 2000

Posted: 18 Jul 2001

See all articles by Gerald Hunt

Gerald Hunt

Ryerson University

David Rayside

University of Toronto

Abstract

Canadian and American research finds that organized labor's engagement with race, ethnicity, gender, and sexual orientation until recently has been largely exclusionist. The Canadian labor movement emerges as having been somewhat more responsive to equity issues, particularly gender and sexual orientation, and at an earlier stage than its U.S. counterpart. The American movement, however, did create limited room for African-American issues and unionization from early this century and now shows signs of broader engagement with diversity issues in general. The literature is strong in case studies pointing to exceptional situations involving minority militancy and union acceptance and in highlighting the role of activists inside and external to the labor movement. It suffers from a lack of large-scale analysis and comparison.

Suggested Citation

Hunt, Gerald and Rayside, David, Labor Union Response to Diversity in Canada and the United States. Industrial Relations, Vol. 39, Issue 3, July 2000, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=241746

Gerald Hunt (Contact Author)

Ryerson University ( email )

350 Victoria Street
Toronto, Ontario M5B 2K3
Canada

David Rayside

University of Toronto ( email )

105 St George Street
Toronto, Ontario M5S 3E6 M5S 3G8
Canada

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