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Document généré le 30 sept. 2021 10:53 Labour/Le Travailleur Reviews / Comptes Rendus Volume 27, 1991 URI : https://id.erudit.org/iderudit/llt27rv01 Aller au sommaire du numéro Éditeur(s) Canadian Committee on Labour History ISSN 0700-3862 (imprimé) 1911-4842 (numérique) Découvrir la revue Citer cet article (1991). Reviews / Comptes Rendus. Labour/Le Travailleur, 27, 283–362. All rights reserved © Canadian Committee on Labour History, 1991 Ce document est protégé par la loi sur le droit d’auteur. L’utilisation des services d’Érudit (y compris la reproduction) est assujettie à sa politique d’utilisation que vous pouvez consulter en ligne. https://apropos.erudit.org/fr/usagers/politique-dutilisation/ Cet article est diffusé et préservé par Érudit. Érudit est un consortium interuniversitaire sans but lucratif composé de l’Université de Montréal, l’Université Laval et l’Université du Québec à Montréal. Il a pour mission la promotion et la valorisation de la recherche. https://www.erudit.org/fr/ REVIEW/COMPTES RENDUS Bob Russell, Back to Work? (:] Labour, State, and Industrial Relations in Canada by Eric Tucker / 283 Don Taylor and Bradley Dow, The Rise of Industrial Unionism in Canada — A History of the CIO by James Struthers / 286 Emile Boudreau et Léo Roback, L'histoire de la FTQ. Des tout débuts jusqu'en 1965 by Jacques Rouillard / 288 Louis Foumier, Michel Dore et al.. The History of the Labour Movement in Quebec by Geoffrey Ewen / 290 J.K. Johnson, Becoming Prominent: Regional Leadership in Uppder Canada, 1791-1841 by Graeme Patterson / 291 Cecil J. Houston and William J. Smyth, Irish Emigration and Canadian Settlement: Patterns, Links, and Letters by Donald Harman Akenson / 293 Chad Gaffield, Language, Schooling, and Cultural Conflict. The Origins of the French-Language Controversy in Ontario by Robert Choquette / 294 Denise Lemieux et Lucie Mercier, Les femmes au tournant du siècle, 1880-1940: âges de la vie, maternité et quotidien by Johanne Daigle / 296 François Weil, Les Franco-Americans by J.I. Little / 298 Alan Noon, East of Adelaide: Photographs of Commercial, Industrial and Working-Class Urban Ontario, 1905-1930 by Diana Pedersen / 300 William C. Beeching, Canadian Volunteers: Spam 1936-1939 by Michiel Horn / 303 Gregory S. Kealey and Reg Whitaker, eds,. R.CMf. Security Bulletins: The War Series, 1939-1941 by J.L. Granatstein / 304 Michael M. Atkinson and William D. Coleman, The State, Business, and Industrial Change in Canada by Duncan McDowell / 305 Yves Vaillancourt, L'évolution des politiques sociales au Québec 1940-1960 by Dominique Jean / 306 Richard Harris, Democracy in Kingston: A Social Movement in Urban Politics, 1965-70 by Joy McBride / 310 André Petitat, Les infirmières. Delà vocation à la profession by Michèle Dagenais /312 Marie-Claire Dumas et Francine Mayer, sous la dir. de, Les femmes et l'équité salariale, un pouvoir à gagner! bu Sylvie Morel /31S Elizabeth Blackmar. Manhattan For Rent, 1785-1850 by Michael J. Doucet /317 Kathy Peiss and Christina Simmons, eds.. Passion and Power: Sexuality in History by Steven Maynard / 320 George M. Frednckson, The Arrogance of Race: Historical Perspectives on Slavery, Racism, and Social Inequality by Klaus J. Hansen / 322 4 Stephen H. Norwood, Labor's Flaming Youth: Telephone Operators and Worker Militancy 1878-1923 by Elaine Bernard / 323 Ken Pones-Wolf, Trade Union Gospel: Christianity and Labor in Industrial Philadelphia, 1865-1915 by Doris O'Dell / 325 Steve Golin, The Fragile Bridge: Pater son Silk Strike, 1913 and David J. Goldberg. A Tale of Three Cities: LAbor Organization and Protest in Pater son, Passaic, and Lawrence, 1916-1921 by Peter Rachleff / 327 Alan Draper, A Rope of Sand: The AFL-CIO Committee on Political Education, 1955-1967 by Desmond Morton / 328 Sidney Fine, Violence in the Model City: The Cavanaugh Administration, Race Relations, and the Detroit Riot of 1967 by Herbert Shapiro / 330 Harvey J. Kaye and Keith McClelland, eds., EJ*. Thompson: Critical Perspectives by Marc Steinberg / 332 Alex Owen, The Darkened Room. Women, Power and Spiritualism in Late Victorian England by Ramsay Cook / 334 Tony Cliff and Donny Gluckstein, The Labour Party A Marxist History by Martin Petter/336 John Kelly, Trade Unions and Socialist Politics by Gregory Albo / 337 Jacques Rancière, The Nights of Labor: The Workers' Dream in Nineteenth-Century France by Bryan D. Palmer / 340 Michael Hanagan, Nascent Proletarians: Class Formation in Post-Revolutionary France by Donald Reid / 342 Stephen Crawford, Technical Workers in an Advanced Society: The Work, Careers and Politics of French Engineers by Rod Millard / 344 Edmund F. Byrne, Work, INc. A Philosophical Enquiry by Henry Laycock / 345 Heather Menzies, Fast Forward and Out of Control: How Technology is Changing Your Life by Mario Creet / 346 Peter S. Li, Ethnic Inequality in a Class Society by Christopher McAll / 348 David Gordon, éd.. Green Cities: Ecologically Sound Approaches to Urban Space by Ray Tomalty / 350 Ken Post and Phil Wright, Socialism and Underdevelopment by Glenn H. McKnight / 352 Gavin Smith, Livelihood and Resistance: Peasants and the Politics of Land in Peru by Jerry D. Moore / 354 Baruch Hirson, Yours for the Union: Class and Community Struggles in South Africa, 1930-1947 by Christopher P. Youé / 356 David H. Plowman, Holding the Line: Compulsory arbitration and national employer co-ordination in Australia by Chris Wright / 357 Tessa Morris-Suzuki, A History of Japanese Economic Thought by Pamela Divinsky / 359 5 REVIEWS/COMPTES RENDUS Bob Russell, Back to Work? [:] Labour, mining the direction of state policy. State State, and Industrial Relations in Canada policy, however, cannot simply be read (Scarborough: Nelson Canada 1990). off the balance of class forces and it can not be assumed that the state will have the IT is, PERHAPS, a sign of the great progress capacity to achieve hegemonic class com made in Canadian labour studies over the promises. Rather, outcomes are also in last fifteen years that book length synthe fluenced by internal characteristics of the ses of the historical experience of workers state and its sub-systems. Russell at have begun appearing with some regular tempts to abbreviate or, perhaps, opera- ity. Palmer's Working Class Experience tionalize these theoretical positions and Heron's Canadian Labour Movement through the notions of the "politics of exemplify this development and their work" and the "work of politics." Al books' titles accurately reflect their re though the definition and usage of these spective foci. Bob Russell's book is an terms varies somewhat in the text, the other contribution to this synthesizing former generally seems to refer to the literature, but its central concern is the forms of political intervention and the role of the state in industrial relations. It policies they produce while the latter re is an ambitious effort which attempts to fers to the actual practices of the state and develop a general theoretical framework their effect on the system of industrial and to apply it to industrial relations in relations. Canada from its origins to the present. Although Russell's theoretical frame Invariably, such a project crosses ground work seems to dictate a broad definition many others have already explored and of industrial relations, he has, without ad Russell's general perspective, as well as equate explanation, excluded or his discussions of particular periods, are marginalized certain subjects. In particu sure to be controversial. lar, industrial relations seems to be Russell's enquiry starts from the equated with collective bargaining. As a premise that the establishment and repro result, the politics of work is reduced to duction of capitalist relations of produc an examination of state policies directly tion is problematic. Employer strategies related to the establishment of trade to control the workforce are inadequate unions as the bargaining agent of their on their own and, in any event, always members. What gets banished from the relate to the policies of die state system. discussion are important areas of state Thus, politics play a crucial role in this regulation such as health and safety, enterprise. Russell rejects the view that workers' compensation, minimum wages the outputs of the state system are deter and other employment standards. Simi mined at the level of the logic of accumu larly, gender and its social construction is lation. Social agency, especially class eliminated from the politics of work and conflict, is critically important in deter- the work of politics. While it is, perhaps, unfair to expect or to demand that all state Table of Contenu for Reviews it en pp. 4 & 5. interventions into the labour market 283 284 LABOUR/LE TRAVAIL should be dealt with in any particular labour markets, but rather were trying to study, it is unclear if Russell is simply build an alternative industrial future. accepting the conventional definition of The historical core of Russell's book industrial relations (which dates from the is the period from 1900 to 1948. Here triumph of the post-War accord) or Russell examines the development and whether the choice is based on his view practice of die federal government's lab of the particular importance of collective our relations policy. Particularly useful bargaining. In any event, a more expan are his analyses of the effect of state in sive view of industrial relations would terventions on the outcomes of industrial actually strengthen Russell's project by disputes. Unlike previous studies which making the extent of state involvement have tended to rely on particular interven more visible. tions or the role of Mackenzie King, Rus Historically, the weakest section of sell has constructed data bases which in the book is chapter 2 on early industrial clude all state interventions under the relations. For example, Russell claims Conciliation Act and, after 1907, the In (35) that the English Combinations Acts dustrial Disputes Investigation Act of 1799 and 1800, which criminalized (IDIA).