The BC Labour Heritage Centre Society preserves, documents and presents the rich history of working people and their unions in British Columbia. The Society engages in partnerships and projects that help define and express the role that work and workers have played in the evolution of social policy and its impact on the present and future shaping of the province. We center voices previously left out including the stories of all races and genders, Indigenous workers and organizations. Further, our work broadens educational and inter-generational connections using varied media, connecting themes from both past and present situations.
by Jak King Reproduced with permission from Grandview Heritage Group Originally published November 10, 2022 The summer of 1910 was a hot one for labour across North America. In the first couple of weeks of Read more…
1991 legal victory by the HEU broadened the definition of “spouse” Researched and written by Natasha Fairweather As early as 1989 the Hospital Employees’ Union (HEU) had successfully negotiated medical benefits for same-sex partners Read more…
Worker walkout in 1918 fueled by western labour militancy Researched and written by Donna Sacuta On February 18, 1918, two hundred oil refinery workers at Ioco, B.C. — 30 kilometres east of Vancouver — walked Read more…