Forestry Company Safety Policy on Vancouver Island
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
FORESTRY COMPANY SAFETY POLICY ON VANCOUVER ISLAND FORSAKING PAUL BUNYAN: A GENDERED ANALYSIS OF FORESTRY COMPANY SAFETY POLICY ON VANCOUVER ISLAND IN THE MID-TWENTIETH CENTURY By Jacqueline Kirkham, B.A., M.A. A Thesis Submitted to the School of Graduate Studies in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy McMaster University © Copyright by Jacqueline Kirkham, June 2017 McMaster University DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY (2017), Hamilton, Ontario (History) TITLE: Forsaking Paul Bunyan: A Gendered Analysis of Forestry Company Safety Policy on Vancouver Island in the Mid-Twentieth Century AUTHOR: Jacqueline Kirkham, B.A. (Vancouver Island University), M.A. (McMaster University) SUPERVISOR: Professor Ruth Frager NUMBER OF PAGES: xi, 314. ii Lay Abstract This thesis looks at the safety policies implemented by three British Columbia forestry companies between 1943 and 1968. Companies sought to increase the efficiency of their operations by reducing the number of compensable accidents and fatalities among their workers. They took the lead in creating a safety regime in forestry, but were joined in the endeavor by the provincial Workmen’s Compensation Board (WCB) and the forest workers’ union, the International Woodworkers of America. Safety programs were heavily gendered, with companies promoting a hetero-patriarchal masculinity in an attempt to reduce worker’s risk-taking. Efforts by companies, as well as the union and the WCB, were successful in reducing many of the hazards of working in forestry. However, many of the dangers in this industry persist into the twenty-first century. iii Abstract This thesis examines the safety policies implemented by three British Columbia forestry companies between 1943 and 1968. Companies sought to increase the efficiency of their operations by reducing the number of compensable accidents and fatalities among their workers. These companies, along with other member-companies in the BC Loggers Association and BC Lumber Manufacturers Association, took the lead in creating a safety regime in BC’s coastal forest industry, but were joined in the endeavor by the provincial Workmen’s Compensation Board (WCB) and the forest workers’ union, the International Woodworkers of America. In order to obtain worker consent for new safety programs, companies targeted worker’s masculinity. Workers who had seen themselves as following in the footsteps of the rugged and independent Paul Bunyan were a problem for companies who wanted to create a sense of mutual responsibility for safety across their entire workforce. Safety programs, accordingly, were heavily gendered and promoted a white, hetero-patriarchal masculinity. This masculine ideal was intended to reduce worker’s willingness to take unnecessary risks. In the later years of this study, companies obtained greater control over the work process by introducing tight controls over the work process in the name of safety. Overall, efforts by companies, as well as the union and the WCB, were successful in reducing many of the hazards of working in forestry by the later 1960s. However, many of the dangers in this industry persist into the twenty-first century. iv Acknowledgments History can be an isolating discipline. I could not have made it through this process without the help and support of my family, friends, and academic community. Thank you to everyone who has taken an interest in me and my work over the ten year journey to this point. My sincere thanks to my supervisor, Ruth Frager, for supporting me throughout my graduate education at McMaster. Thank you for always challenging me to look at my work from new angles. I am a better historian because of your guidance. To my committee members, Karen Balcom and Nancy Bouchier: Thank you for going above and beyond the role of second and third reader. I am so grateful for your support of my academic and professional development. Your thoughtful suggestions have pushed me to gain the skills and confidence I need for post-PhD life. This work was made financially possible by a number of travel grants, fellowships and scholarships. I am grateful for the financial support from the Edna Elizabeth Ross Reeves Scholarship, the Mildred Armstrong Fund, the Richard Fuller Memorial Scholarship, the James Robertson Carruthers Memorial Award, and the L.R. Wilson Institute for Canadian History. Without this generous financial assistance this project could not have been completed. The McMaster Department of History has been incredibly supportive. Without Debbie Loban and Wendy Benedetti’s incredible patience and consistent support I don’t know how any of us would make it through. I also want to thank all of the faculty v members outside of my committee who took an interest in me and my work. Especially Tracy McDonald for always being a listening ear when I needed it. I was fortunate to have the opportunity to work in several archives when gathering resources for this project. Thank you to the staff of the Provincial archives in Victoria and to the UBC archives in Vancouver. All of the archivists and staff I interacted with were wonderful, but I want to give special thanks to the staff and volunteers of the Kaatza Museum and Archives, Catherine Siba at Courtney & Comox Museum and Archives, and the staff of the Campbell River Archives. Thank you all for being so gracious in making room for me in your museums when I inevitably needed just a few more days than I had planned, and for taking an interest in my project. This project has also benefitted from feedback from a number of people from across the continent. To all those who attended my conference talks at Qualicum Conference 2014, HERA 2015, IGHSC 2015, York History’s Conference 2015, and the McMaster Graduate History Conference 2016, your questions and comments have shaped this project in dozens of small ways. Thank you. I also want to extend a special thank you to the people who kept me sane and helped made Grad school one of the best times in my life. Ross Huyskamp: a massive thank you for reading countless drafts and helping me find an argument somewhere in the narrative. Jelena Cabro: thank you for keeping me grounded with your sense of humour and general disinterest in my research, and for reminding me that there is a life on the other side of all of this academia. To the Games Night crew (Alex, Andrew, Chelsea, Curran, Kelsey, Megan, Mica, Oleksa, and Scott): Thanks for all the laughter and for vi listening to me rant. I could not have survived this process without you. Maria Pinelli and her entire family: Thank you for adopting me as a temporary part of the family in 2013. I am so deeply grateful for your warmth and generosity. Vanessa Lovisa: I cannot believe it’s been five years since we started this crazy process. Thank you for always being ready with words of encouragement and reassurance when I felt overwhelmed. From comps to defense and everything in between has been a lot easier with you along for the same ride. Chelsea Calder, Ateeka Khan, and Nadina Taylor: thank you for always being there with a comforting word and for sharing your beautiful families with me. Last, but definitely not least, I need to thank my family. Mom: thank you for always believing I could do this. Knowing I always have your unfailing love and support to fall back on has let me roam much farther than I ever believed possible. Kaitlyn: thank you for being the best sister I could have ever wished for. Thanks for never letting me take myself too seriously and for always making me feel wanted and missed. Dad: thank you for always challenging me and for instilling in me a passion for union politics and strong opinions on just about everything. Grandma: Thank you for all the long talks on the phone. You helped keep me connected to home in the early years when Nanaimo felt a world away. Gramma and Papa: I miss you every day. I wish you could have seen this work completed, but I know you could not have been more proud of me than you were. Thank you for being there for me for the first 27 years of my life. vii Table of Contents Lay Abstract ....................................................................................................................... iii Abstract ............................................................................................................................... iv Acknowledgments ................................................................................................................ v List of Tables ...................................................................................................................... ix List of Abbreviations ........................................................................................................... x Declaration of Academic Achievement .............................................................................. xi Introduction .......................................................................................................................... 1 Chapter 1: Getting Organized ............................................................................................ 32 Chapter 2: Creating a Regulatory Regime ......................................................................... 91 Chapter 3: Keeping the Family (Alive) Together ............................................................ 147 Chapter 4: Standardizing (Safe) Work Practice ............................................................... 230 Conclusion ......................................................................................................................