L'expérience syndicale au Québec: ses rapports avec l'État, à la nation et à l'opinion publique

This is a compilation of articles and essays by Jacques Rouillard, the most prolific historian of the Quebec union movement. Of the ten texts, five are previously unpublished, while three from the 1980s have been updated. This volume is divided into three sections: relations with the state, visions of nationalism, and public perceptions of organized labour. The eight chapters in the first two sections focus on the central labour bodies of the movements that have dominated Quebec labour since the late nineteenth century: for the international unions these are the Montreal Trades and Labour Council (mtlc), the Québec Provincial Federation of Labour (qpfl), and the Fédération des travailleurs et travailleusses du Québec (ftq); for the national unions these include the Confédération des travailleurs catholique du Canada and Confédération des syndicats nationaux (csn). More attention is paid to international than to national organizations in recognition of their importance among francophones. Readers will find some discussion of the Fédération des unions industriels du Québec that represented the Congress for Industrial Organization bodies, not much on the Centrale de l'enseignement du Québec that organized teachers, and almost no mention of the Centrale des syndicates démocratiques, perhaps because it is smaller and has declined in membership. The final two chapters examine public opinion on unions as expressed through polls since the 1940s.

These essays track the position of the central labour bodies on issues such as provincial autonomy, language policy, sovereignty, relations with the Parti Québécois and the Quebec government of the day, and the relationship between the ftq and the Canadian Labour Congress. The author compares the records of the international and national union movements and measures them against the nationalist positions of recent decades. Two main points are that labour has long looked beyond collective bargaining to government action to help workers and that since the 1950s and 1960s it has sought action by the Quebec government rather than the federal state. Many of these articles cover long periods; several span fifty years and two deal with more than a century. Several follow the issues up to 2007.

The author succeeds in making his main points but frequently leaves the reader yearning for more context and detail, particularly in the sections covering long periods. In one instance, in the seventh chapter on the representation of nationalism at the ftq, he demonstrates that it was only in the late 1950s that the international unions began to urge the Quebec government to play a more dynamic role in social security, but there is little to explain the change. Why not provide a brief passage on the changes to Quebec nationalism at this time, since organized labour was very likely subject to some of the same forces that influenced other sections of Quebec society? As for detail, the reader can follow the twists and turns on issues such as sovereignty, and sometimes these are accompanied by brief explanations taken from the central bodies' resolutions or documents. The discussion would be richer and would permit a more nuanced understanding of the reasons for policy shifts if it paid more attention to the debates and competing positions. Occasionally Rouillard cites a clash of opinions. In chapter 5, 'Les trois âges du nationalisme à la csn,' the author states that at a 1979 convention delegates were divided among Parti Québécois supporters, federalists, and socialists, but it would it be helpful to add more on their respective composition or the reasons for their stances.

The chapters that deal with shorter time spans are the strongest. The second chapter on the mtlc and the origins of social democracy in Quebec is particularly good for the discussion of selected issues such as the council's position on education and municipal streetcar contracts. The best is chapter 3, 'Haro sur le fascisme,' on the creation of the qpfl. It offers a detailed account of the conflicting views and positions of the leadership and is excellent on the context that includes the anti-communism of the Duplessis government, the padlock law, the attacks on international unions, and the reaction to the Spanish Civil War. Still this text raises another point. There is little reference to events outside Quebec, and in this case there was a missed opportunity to underline what made Quebec distinct. Rouillard reveals the motives that prompted Quebec leaders to ask for a provincial organization but does not explain why the Trades and Labour Congress of Canada granted one to Quebec at the same time as it refused similar requests from Ontario and New Brunswick.

This is a useful work that brings together essays that well represent many of the issues that Rouillard has examined throughout his career. It is well written and would be accessible to upper-level undergraduate students. It should be welcomed by anyone interested in Quebec labour.