Making History: Workers, Conflict, and Collective Action
Brock University, St. Catharines ON, Jun 2-4, 2027
The conference organizing committee invites submissions for the 13th annual meeting of the Canadian Association for Work & Labour Studies (CAWLS), to be held June 2–4, 2027 at Brock University in Ontario’s Niagara Region.
The organizing committee welcomes proposals on all topics addressing the past, present, and future of work and labour studies. Our goal is to create a conference program that reflects the broadest possible range of methodological, theoretical, and disciplinary approaches. We invite proposals for single papers, thematic streams, multi-paper panels, roundtables, and workshops. Participation from researchers working in union and community settings is strongly encouraged.
The 2027 conference theme, “Making History: Workers, Conflict, and Collective Action,” foregrounds the central role of struggle and organizing in shaping the past and present of work. Across different historical moments and geographic contexts, workers have engaged in collective action to challenge exploitation, assert rights, and transform social relations. This conference invites participants to examine how workers make history through conflict, resistance, and collective organizing, and to consider how these processes continue to evolve.
At a time marked by economic restructuring, political polarization, ecological crisis, and ongoing struggles over rights and recognition, the conference encourages critical reflection on the forms, strategies, and outcomes of worker mobilization. Contributions may explore historical and contemporary cases of labour conflict, the dynamics of organizing and collective bargaining, and the ways in which workers and their organizations navigate changing political and economic terrains.
Panel and paper submissions might consider questions such as:
• How have workers historically made gains through conflict and collective action?
• How are contemporary forms of labour conflict reshaping worker power and organization?
• What new forms of organizing are emerging in response to precarious, informal, or platform-based work?
• How do intersecting struggles around race, gender, migration, and Indigeneity shape collective action?
• In what ways are unions and worker organizations adapting to new political and economic conditions?
• How do local struggles connect to transnational movements and global labour solidarity?
• What role does the state play in mediating or intensifying labour conflict?
• How are climate change and the push for a just transition reshaping worker activism?
Participants are not limited to these questions and are encouraged to submit proposals addressing other pressing issues relevant to workers, unions, and labour movements, including:
• Labour and imperialism, colonialism, and global capitalism
• Youth and student labour activism
• Social reproduction, unpaid work, and care economies
• Anti-racist, feminist, and intersectional labour struggles
• Income security, pensions, and social protection
• Technological change and digitally mediated work
• Workplace health, safety, and disability justice
CAWLS 2027 welcomes submissions from researchers in university, union, and community settings. All presenters must be members in good standing at the time of the conference.
CAWLS 2027 will offer a dynamic, multi‑disciplinary and welcoming conference environment that is ideal for both new and established scholars, graduate students, and union and community researchers. The program will include an organized Niagara labour history tour (RSVP required), social events, a major keynote address, and dozens of workshops and panels designed to foster discussion. The mix of engaged labour research and accessible networking opportunities will make it an especially supportive space for emerging researchers to share work, build collaborations, and connect with the broader labour studies community.
The conference is organized by CAWLS in collaboration with the Canadian Committee on Labour History.
Panel, roundtable, and workshop proposals are due December 11, 2026. Individual paper submissions are due January 10, 2027.
Submissions and inquiries can be sent to [email protected]
