Manuals & Guides

Labour Council has developed a wide variety of resources for union activists and affiliates.  These range from celebrating our history and diversity, to providing essential tools for key campaigns or labour disputes. Feel free to download and share – we are all stronger when we know how to win!

Action

Preparing Local Unions for Powerful Campaigns: Achieving a State of Readiness

• Labour and our allies have shown time and time again that we can effectively mobilize the membership and work in coalitions to fight‐off our adversaries. The battles in Wisconsin and elsewhere in the United States are demonstrating that there are no longer any limits when it comes to the goals of anti‐labour forces, and their tactics are increasingly ruthless. A union in a state of readiness is prepared to respond effectively, on short notice, to a major attack or labour dispute. Click to download in English or French.

 

Toronto & York Region Labour Council Campaign Planning Handbook

• Understanding the power relationships that shape our world and learning how to better create our own power is at the heart of effective campaign planning. Today we are facing the resurgent drive of global capital to change the rules of the post-war “social contract” between business and labour. Economic restructuring, technological change and deregulation pose serious challenges to us all. Workers who were excluded from the post-war “social contract” are being hit the hardest. Relying on past practice will not be sufficient to protect living standards, working conditions and public services. A key part of rebuilding the power of our movement is improving our ability to plan and wage effective campaigns. Download in English, French, Simplified Chinese, and Traditional Chinese.

 

Demonstration Guide

• Around the world, public demonstrations are an important form of political expression. Demonstrations are used to show opposition to unfair treatment, publicize issues and demands, build movements and apply pressure on corporations, governments and other targets. This guide is designed to help organizers plan demonstrations that are inclusive, effective and safe. Most demonstrations are not stand-alone events, they are tactics used during on-going campaigns. When a campaign plan is in place, there is a clear frame of reference for the many decisions that must be made when planning a demonstration. Click here to download.

 

“Developing Leadership” by Allan Kaplan

• This document is an unauthorized summary of arguments made by Allan Kaplan in a paper produced by the Community Development Resource Association in South Africa. It provides a model for understanding organizational capacity and an 8-step guide to building capacity. This document is referenced in Labour Council’s 2020-2022 Strategic Plan. Click here to download.

 

A Labour Guide to Climate Action

• The evidence of climate change — fires, floods, heat waves and droughts — is impossible to deny. The climate crisis is real, but also presents an opportunity. We can use our skills and knowledge to plan a truly sustainable, low-carbon economy with good jobs for all. Let’s work together to ensure that the choices for our future are the right ones. Click here to download.

 

Survival Manuals for Workers on Strike or Locked Out

• The manuals contain information about various community and social services in Toronto and York Region that can assist union members and their families who are on strike or locked out. Click on either TORONTO REGION or YORK REGION to download the manual. For print copies of either manual, contact ​Labour Community Services or email [email protected]

Equity

Charter of Inclusive Workplaces & Communities

• This Charter is our Labour Council’s commitment to diversity, inclusivity and equity in our labour movement. We urge every one of our affiliate members to adopt its inclusion into their policy framework. Click to download a printable copy.

 

Strengthening Our Unions Through Equity

• Nearly two decades ago, the Canadian labour movement took a hard look at the reality of racial discrimination in our workplaces, our society, and in our unions. the document is designed to be a tool for activists and leaders who want to build more powerful unions in greater Toronto, and across Canada. It is written by Jojo Geronimo, veteran labour educator former Executive Director of the Labour Education Centre. Click here to download.

 

Equity Guide Workshop

• This workshop outline is meant to be accompanied by the A Leader’s Guide to Strengthen Unions – Moving Beyond Diversity Towards inclusion and Equity (Equity Guide). Any facilitator or discussion leader will need to be familiar with the contents and the concepts within the Equity Guide. It is also highly recommended that the facilitator attend a mandatory training session before guiding local unions through this workshop. Click here to download.

 

Working Women, Working Poor

• This publication is the result of a participatory research project, motivated by the need tofocus attention on the lives of the diverse working women in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). Today the GTA is becoming a low-wage economy, with extensive loss of good unionized jobs and growing poverty which is increasingly feminized, racialized and includes high numbers of newer immigrants. The objective of the research was to highlight the lives of the working — i.e. waged women in the GTA in their own voices. Click here to download.

 

Yes, It Matters!/The Refugees Next Door

• Yes, It Matters! aims to get unions working together to end systemic racism and create a just Canada for all. It includes a high-level overview of systemic racism and provides an outline for how to engage on these issues within your organization. Click here to download.
• The Refugee Project aims to help shift the narrative around refugees and other newcomers to Canada, away from negativity and helplessness and towards a broader understanding of refugees as part of the fabric of our community. Click here to download.

  

Labour Pride: What Our Unions Have Done for Us

• The story of working class gays and lesbians in the trade union movement is as old as the early days of union organizing, when workers began to collectively demand improvements in their working conditions and fight for better pay, hours and benefits. This booklet offers a brief account of the role of workers and their unions in supporting LGBTQ rights in Canada (mostly in Toronto and Ontario) from the 1970s to the early 2000s. Click to here to download.

 

The Spirit of Our Movement

• • The Spirit of Our Movement is a 100 page volume of photographs by John Maclennan, with a moving personal essay by Winnie Ng, interspersed with brief stories from our 145 year history. Get your copy for $12 each, or $10 on orders of 5 or more. Call 416-441-3663 x221.

Unions

Unions 101

• People are often asking if there is a simple presentation for schools, public forums or new member classes that answers the question “What are unions about?” Labour Council has a short digital “Prezi” presentation that combines graphics, pictures and video clips, and is suitable for all uses. Check it out here.

 

About Unions

• Since the First Nations peoples gave Toronto its name – a gathering place – this city has been built by immigrants and their descendants. Each new generation of immigrants discovered both opportunity and one vital lesson: that they needed to have unions in order to raise living standards for themselves, their families and their communities. To download the brochure click here.

 

Chinese Speaking Workers Brochure

• Labour Council brochure for outreach to Chinese speaking workers, explaining the benefits of joining and being active in the union movement. 

 

Toronto Labour History Walking Tours

• Mapping our work – Toronto’s rich adn dramatic history of working people – the unions we organized, and the key battles we have waged and won has largely been buried in official histories of the city.

  Mapping Our Work: is a way t being some of our union history into the light of day. It include three walking tours, each covering a different time period and area.

5 Step Guide for Local Union Leaders

• Labour’s response to the Conservative agenda: Let’s mount a powerful movement to defeat conservative attacks. Click here to read more.

Join the Fight for a Stronger City

From local political involvement, to community services and a steady commitment to social justice,  we are deeply involved with the organization and advocacy on issues that are vital to working people throughout the region.

Get Involved

Explore Campaigns

Yes, It Matters!

Together, we can end systemic racism and build a just Canada for everyone.

Climate Justice & Action

Let’s empower workers to build a long-lasting, sustainable economy.

Fund Our Schools

We love our schools, but there are problems that need urgent attention.