This podcast episode tells the story of the "conductorettes" - the women who worked as streetcar conductors in Vancouver during World War II when many men were overseas fighting fascism. The conductorettes were part of a strong union, the Amalgamated Transit Union, which ensured they had the same rights, privileges, and wages as the men. The union played an important role in supporting the women, including helping one get her job back after she was fired for becoming pregnant.

Featured are interviews with three former conductorettes - Pearl Wattum, Vilma Westerholm, and Edra McLeod - who describe their experiences on the job, including the challenges they faced, such as dealing with unruly passengers and the close supervision by company supervisors.

The podcast also provides historical context on the streetcar system in Vancouver, the role of unions, and the transition to buses and trolleybuses that eventually replaced the streetcars.

The episode highlights the important contributions these women made to keeping the city's transit system running during a critical time, and how their experiences shed light on the changing role of women in the workforce during the war years.

Theme song: "Hold the Fort” (traditional) - Arranged & Performed by Tom Hawken & his band, 1992.

Episode music:

"I'm a TTC Skidaddler," written and performed by Stompin' Tom Connors, Bud the Spud and Other Favourites (1970)

"The Trolley Song," Judy Garland, from Meet Me in St. Louis (1944)

Episode photo:

Greta Vesterback selling tickets for B.C. Electric Railway, 1946. Courtesy Rod Mickleburgh.

Sources:

Amalgamated Transit Union, a history (n.d.), accessed May 20, 2025, https://www.atu.org/downloadable-asset/history-of-atu.pdf

TransLink, "The Conductorettes: The first women to drive transit in Vancouver," The Buzzer Blog, July 16, 2015, https://buzzer.translink.ca/2015/07/the-conductorettes-the-first-women-to-drive-transit-in-vancouver-2/.

Pearl Berrington (Wattum). Audio interview by Richard Payment, Vancouver Historical Society. 1981. University of British Columbia Special Collections.

Pearl Barrington (Wattum). Audio interview by Sara Diamond, Women’s Labour History Project. 1982. Courtesy VIVO Media Arts Centre and SFU Archives.

Edra McLeod. Audio interview by Richard Payment, Vancouver Historical Society. 1981. University of British Columbia Special Collections.

Edra McLeod. Audio interview by Sara Diamond, Women’s Labour History Project. 1979. Courtesy VIVO Media Arts Centre and SFU Archives.

Vilma Jensine Westerholm. Audio interview by Richard Payment, Vancouver Historical Society. 1981. University of British Columbia Special Collections.

Written and researched by Patricia Wejr

Hosted by Rod Mickleburgh

Technical production by John Mabbott

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Using interviews from the B.C. Labour Heritage Centre's Oral History Project, the Canadian Anti-Apartheid Activist History Project, and a retired BCGEU (BC General Services Union) activist, this episode tells the impressive story of international solidarity by B.C. union members who worked tirelessly in support of those fighting to end South Africa’s heinous apartheid system. Starting in 1976, until the first free election in 1994, actions by citizens and labour shaped attitudes and responses to apartheid that resonate decades later. Featured are interviews with Jef Keighley, Cathy Walker, Colleen Jordan and Randy Pearson, along with music from the Total Experience Gospel Choir and Solidarity Notes Labour Choir.

Theme song: "Hold the Fort” (traditional) - Arranged & Performed by Tom Hawken & his band, 1992.

Episode music:

Enoch Mankayi Sontonga, "Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika", South African National Anthem, adopted 1997. Performed by Solidarity Notes Labour Choir (2016).

“Shine” performed by the Total Experience Gospel Choir. “Patrinell: The Story of the Total Experience Gospel Choir" Official documentary Trailer #1 (2017)" https://youtu.be/5MvvIr_ScQw?si=4GdQcqpaq4TUibQY

Sources:

Ontario Federation of Labour. 30 April 2024. "Two Canadians to receive prestigious order from South African government, for the first time since Brian Mulroney." [Press Release] https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2024/04/30/2872225/0/en/Two-Canadians-to-receive-prestigious-order-from-South-African-government-for-the-first-time-since-Brian-Mulroney.html

“Unions’ actions to embargo apartheid.” Pacific Tribune. 5 March 1986. 16.

Colleen Jordan. Interview by Keith Reynolds. 22 June 2023. https://www.labourheritagecentre.ca/oral-history/colleen-jordan/

Randy Pearson. Interview by Patricia Wejr. 17 February 2025.

Jef Keighley. Interview by Doug Miller and Jane Armstrong, Canadian Anti-Apartheid Activist History Project. 26 January 2022. Uploaded by SACTU Solidarity Alumni Archive, 12 March 2023. https://youtu.be/JO3oabUZDTY?si=Pi7IJiW5NVxvkpR9

Cathy Walker. Interview by Doug Miller, Canadian Anti-Apartheid Activist History Project. n.d. Uploaded by SACTU Solidarity Alumni Archive, 13 March 2023.
https://youtu.be/ljVjfVkNZvk?si=1vXNCS9Gr_eKzlTI

SACTU Solidarity Alumni Archive https://www.sactusolidarityalumniarchive.org/

Written and researched by Patricia Wejr

Hosted by Rod Mickleburgh

Technical production by John Mabbott

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On June 3, 1976 simmering discontent at the Alcan smelter in the northern B.C. community of Kitimat turned into a full-scale revolt. Some members of independent union CASAW (Canadian Association of Smelter and Allied Workers) staged a wildcat strike after being pushed too far by the company. They were soon joined by 1,800 others. Twice the union members rejected their executive’s recommendation to return to work. 150 RCMP officers in riot gear and flanked by dogs and shotguns arrested the union’s leaders, charges were laid and fines levied against the union. It was the first major job action in Canada against federal wage controls, and left the community bitterly divided, even decades later.

Featured in this episode is vintage archival recordings with Jim Sinclair, Jim Brisebois and Rod Mickleburgh. You will also hear "Something Good Worth Fighting For", an original song written by Bill Hood and performed by the Gram Partisans.

A wildcat strike is a strike action undertaken by unionized workers without union leadership's authorization, support, or approval.

Music:

Theme song: "Hold the Fort” (traditional) - Arranged & Performed by Tom Hawken & his band, 1992.

Episode song: "Something Good Worth Fighting For", written and performed by Bill Hood and the Gram Partisans, 2024. https://youtu.be/Jw0uXmIT624

Sources:

Peter Burton. Interview by Ken Novakowski. 28 November 2016. https://www.labourheritagecentre.ca/oral-history/peter-burton/

"Company Towns on Strike Kitimat Part 1." Audio recording, undated. Vancouver Co-op Radio. Allen Seager Fonds, B.C. Labour Heritage Centre.

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In Episode 27, we brought you stories from women who worked in the province's once numerous canneries and fish processing plants. For some, this was a stepping stone to working on the fish boats. In Episode 28, we hear from Barbara Stevens, whose parents were both union activists in the United Fishermen and Allied Workers Union (UFAWU). Homer Stevens was jailed in 1967 for defying a court injunction during the Prince Rupert trawl fishermen’s strike. Barbara Stevens was an experienced hand in the fishing industry and an activist in her own right. Also featured is longtime Prince Rupert resident Joy Thorkelson, who held many positions in the UFAWU over the years, including President.

Music:

Theme song: "Hold the Fort” (traditional) - Arranged & Performed by Tom Hawken & his band, 1992.

Episode songs: "
Bossin, Bob. "What Can One Woman Do?" Performed by Stringband, sung by Mary-Lynn Hammond, 1983.

Hewison, George. "Song of the Sockeye." George Hewison, 1982.

Sources:

Barbara Stevens. Interview by Patricia Wejr. 26 June 2024.

Joy Thorkelson. Interviews by B.C. Labour Heritage Centre Oral History Project. 6 September 2019 and 19 September 2019. https://www.labourheritagecentre.ca/oral-history/joy-thorkelson/

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This is the first of a two-part series on the role of women in BC ‘s once thriving fishing industry. This episode hears from women who worked in the fish canneries that once lined the west coast of BC. They bring to life a time when BC fish helped feed the nation and many parts of the world. Included are recordings of an indigenous woman who worked in canneries along the Skeena River from the age of 10. We also meet Josephine Charlie of the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish Nation), interviewed in 1979. She and her husband travelled to Knights Inlet to fish and work in the canneries. We are also joined by Jackie Campbell, a long-time UFAWU activist who describes the fight to end two-tier gendered wages.

Music:

Theme song: "Hold the Fort” (traditional) - Arranged & Performed by Tom Hawken & his band, 1992.

Episode song: "Canning Salmon" by Linda Chobotuck, 1985. Performed by Fraser Union, 2009.

Sources:
Backhouse, Frances. "The last BC Cannery Standing - and Why it Matters", The Tyee. 22 August 2018. https://thetyee.ca/Solutions/2018/08/22/Last-BC-Cannery-Standing/

B.C. Labour Heritage Centre (2014). "Canning Salmon." https://www.labourheritagecentre.ca/canning/

"Early B.C. Coast Salmon Cannery Workers." Audio recording, undated. Vancouver Co-op Radio. Allen Seager Fonds, B.C. Labour Heritage Centre.

Josephine Charlie interview, Simon Fraser University Archives. Women's Labour History collection, F-67-2-0-0-0-8, Sara Diamond interviewer, 1979. https://atom.archives.sfu.ca/f-67-2-0-0-0-8

Jackie Campbell. Interview by Patricia Wejr. 13 June 2024.

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A 1966 wildcat strike* by 400 mostly women members of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) at Lenkurt Electric in Burnaby, BC was a turning point for the province's labour movement. This was a time when courts and police routinely jailed and fined union members during labour disputes, and Canadian members of international unions were demanding more autonomy.

The story of the Lenkurt Electric strike is described by Ian McDonald, whose book "The Red Baron of IBEW Local 213: Les McDonald, Union Politics, and the 1966 Wildcat Strike at Lenkurt Electric" will be published in 2024.

As a bonus, Bill Hood and The Gram Partisans debut their original song "Lenkurt Electric: Turning the Tide".

*wildcat strike: A wildcat strike is a strike that is started by a group of workers without the approval of their union.

Music:

Theme song: "Hold the Fort” (traditional) - Arranged & Performed by Tom Hawken & his band, 1992.

Episode song: "Lenkurt Electric: Turning the Tide", written and performed by Bill Hood and the Gram Partisans, 2024.

Sources:

McDonald, Ian. Interview by Patricia Wejr, March 2024.

Succamore, Jess. Interview by Sean Griffin and Ian McDonald, 24 February 2018. https://www.labourheritagecentre.ca/oral-history/jess-succamore/

McDonald, Ian. Red Baron of IBEW Local 213: Les McDonald, union politics, and the 1966 wildcat strike at Lenkurt Electric. AU PRESS, 2024.

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This episode features two larger than life historical figures: Harvey Murphy, regional director of the International Union of Mine Mill and Smelter Workers Union and Paul Robeson, Black American superstar known around the world for his powerful singing voice and a fearless crusader for peace, universal justice and an end to racial discrimination in the United States.

This was the cold war era, and the US government had Robeson pegged as a dangerous radical. Prevented from entering Canada to attend the union’s convention in Vancouver, Murphy arranged for a massive concert at Peace Arch Park, about 50 km south of the city. Some 25,000 people came to hear Robeson — standing on the back of a flatbed truck on the US side of the border — perform for the cheering throng in Canada.

Host, Rod Mickleburgh, interviews historian Ron Verzuh who has researched and written about the Peace Arch Concert. We also hear the voices of Harvey Murphy and Paul Robeson recorded at the border in 1952.

Sources:

Verzuh, Ron. Interview. Conducted by Rod Mickleburgh, 7 February 2023.

Paul Robeson. "The Peace Arch Concerts." Folk Era Records (1988).

Theme song: "Hold the Fort” (traditional) - Arranged & Performed by Tom Hawken & his band, 1992.

See also:

Verzuh, Ron. (2012). Mine-Mill's Peace Arch Concerts: How a "Red" Union and a Famous Singer-Activist Fought for Peace and Social Justice during the Cold War. BC Studies, 61.

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We celebrate the life of Tatsuro 'Buck' Suzuki, who spent his life advocating for the West Coast fishing community, first as a young liaison between Japanese Canadians and an industry dominated by Whites, then as a strong trade unionist, and finally, as an early environmental activist, fighting to protect salmon habitat.

Included are recordings of Buck Suzuki made by the City of Richmond Archives in the 1970s, a few years before he died. We also spoke with Lorene Oikawa. Her father was Buck's cousin, yet she called him 'Uncle Buck'. Oikawa has carried on his legacy of trade unionism and social activism.

For more information: T. Buck Suzuki Foundation

Host: Rod Mickleburgh
Research and writing: Patricia Wejr
Technical wizard: John Mabbott

Sources:

Suzuki, Buck. Interview. City of Richmond Archives. April 26, 1973.

Suzuki, Buck. Interview. City of Richmond Archives. January 15, 1976.

Music:
Theme song: "Hold the Fort” (traditional) - Arranged & Performed by Tom Hawken & his band, 1992.

Hewison, George. "Song of the Sockeye." George Hewison, 1982.

Hewison, George. "I Don't Want Your Millions Mister" by Jim Garland (1938), performed by George Hewison and The Rank 'N File Band.

"Wonderful tribute to Buck. I recall meeting Buck for the first time at a UFAWU Convention, where my Dad was a delegate and considered Buck, not only a Union Brother, but a good friend. I was about 10 years old and knew a little bit about his legendary story. He was the small boat vice-president of the UFAWU for many years. As Vice President, as the podcast points out, Buck stepped in when Homer and Steve went to jail, but Buck's heroism went well beyond holding office. The 1967 strike and the courts had drained our treasury and we were broke. So Buck got on a plane for Rivers' Inlet and related the union's financial woes to the fleet, and they, mainly fishermen of Japanese ancestry, responded. Buck came back with about $50,000 in CASH to tide the Union over until income started to flow in from regular dues. Buck always spoke softly and eloquently, if not passionately, a true labour giant. Thank you so much to the entire team for telling his story."--George Hewison.

"In 1981, the UFAWU created the T Buck Suzuki Environmental Foundation to take on the work of protecting fish habitat. Buck Suzuki was a union activist. He joined the UFAWU in May 1949 and was instrumental in the fight to bring Japanese-Canadian fishermen back into the industry after WWII. Buck Suzuki was an active fisherman who served 11 terms as Vice-President of the Union and Acting President in 1967-68. He cared deeply about the environment and led the fight to protect the Fraser estuary against industrial pollution. T Buck died in 1977 and was made a Life Member of the Union" -- UFAWU/Unifor Facebook

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