PSAC STRIKE MANUAL

Everything you need to know to plan and execute effective strikes

“Without labour nothing prospers.”

– Sophocles

All workers are entitled to fair ness, dignity and respect. The right to strike is a unionized worker’s tool to achieve and defend these rights.

This booklet is designed for members of PSAC, to help you understand strikes, why they happen, how they work and what your role might be during one.

Experienced and inexperienced alike come together during a strike, using creative ideas, skills and bravery to fight for gains such as better wages, job security, improved working conditions, fair ness in the workplace and human dignity.

Union members and the community at large benefit from strikes. Workers stand up for their rights and gain better salaries and working conditions from their employers. Other employers see that workers will strike when forced so they are more likely to negotiate actively. And economic gains made in strikes create an upward pressure on overall wages, benefiting the economy and local communities.

When workers unite for their rights, they stand up for democracy and achieve social and economic justice.

This guide features the knowledge that PSAC has acquired after more than 40 years of fighting for workers’ rights. It also includes anecdotes and memories from long-time union activists and PSAC staff members.

Feel free to share this booklet with members of other unions and with your friends and family. When we stand up for workers’ rights, everyone benefits. We wish you strength and solidarity in your workplaces and communities.