What events led to the Winnipeg General Strike in 1919?

The Winnipeg General Strike was the culmination of labour unrest that had been building across Canada since the introduction of the Industrial Disputes and Investigation Act. Causes included

• changing labour conditions and practices as a result of the war;
• sympathy with the Russian revolution that occurred in 1905;
• unions still having no rights of recognition by employers;
• an influx of immigrants to Canada from Europe;
• many immigrants coming from countries where they had fought or been fighting capitalists and landlords and bringing their ideas and enthusiasms with them to Canada;
• soldiers returning from the war causing a shortage of jobs.

Further, the cost of living had gone up but employers were still making large profits. Socialist ideas were discussed widely at labour meetings.

The immediate events preceding the Winnipeg strike were demands from workers’ councils in Winnipeg for fewer working hours, higher wages, and union recognition.

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