The auto industry in North
America is in crisis. Over the past 5 years, many plants have been
closed and thousands of workers laid off. This process continued recently when
Collins & Aikman declared bankruptcy and announced it would close its plant
in Scarborough.
From 8th September to the 10th, the New Democratic Party (NDP) held its biennial federal convention in Québec City. The NDP’s youth wing, the New Democratic Youth of Canada (NDYC), also held its convention in Québec just prior to the federal convention.
Since the betrayal of the Ontario Days of Action in 1996-97, the movement in Ontario has been at one of its lowest levels. This is in contrast to the rest of Canada where most provinces are seeing some of the most militant labour actions since the 1970s. In both British Columbia and Québec, we have seen a burgeoning general strike movement while Newfoundland recently saw the largest strike in the province’s history.