The strike is over – now what?
Resource Details
Author(s): Sarah Dobson
Date: January 9, 2025
Recently, many Canadians and businesses felt the impact of a lengthy strike by Canada Post workers. The month-long dispute came about after demands for higher wages, enhanced benefits and leaves, and greater job security were not met. But while the conclusion of a strike may seem like the resolution of a conflict, in many ways, it marks the start of a complex and sensitive recovery process.
According to Sean O’Brady, the transition back to work after a strike receives far less attention than the conflict itself. “It’s very safe to say that… there is very little interest in what happens in terms of tensions and culture within the organization after a strike,” says the assistant professor of human resources and management at McMaster University. “The focus is on the issues relating to the strike, the nature of the strike, the strategies of the strike, the duration of the strike, the organizing of workers to begin with, [and] employer resistance.”
“The ability for employers to maintain productive workers, for them to maintain a positive culture of collaboration within the organization — as well for workers to maintain solidarity, should they need to draw on it again at another point — this is not something that is at the forefront of research inquiry,” he says.
According to Sean O’Brady, the transition back to work after a strike receives far less attention than the conflict itself. “It’s very safe to say that… there is very little interest in what happens in terms of tensions and culture within the organization after a strike,” says the assistant professor of human resources and management at McMaster University. “The focus is on the issues relating to the strike, the nature of the strike, the strategies of the strike, the duration of the strike, the organizing of workers to begin with, [and] employer resistance.”
“The ability for employers to maintain productive workers, for them to maintain a positive culture of collaboration within the organization — as well for workers to maintain solidarity, should they need to draw on it again at another point — this is not something that is at the forefront of research inquiry,” he says.