Trade unions have been unable to slow or reverse dealignment in working class politics, writes Fred Wilson. How has this happened? Photo courtesy Canadian Labour Congress/Facebook.

Working class politics in Canada is at a disturbing junction. There has been a shift in voting patterns, sometimes referred to as “dealignment,” in which working class voters have moved away from traditional class-based loyalties towards right-wing populist parties and movements. In the recent US election, an estimated 56 percent of working class voters cast their ballot for Trump. In Canada, through most of 2023 and 2024, a significant plurality of working class voters indicated their preference for the Conservative Party under the leadership of Pierre Poilievre.

There are multiple theses competing for narrative leadership to explain dealignment and surging working class support for right-wing populism: geopolitical and environmental crises that put tens of millions of people in motion as migrants pour across borders; a rise of individualism and rebellion that took root in the trauma of the COVID crisis; an inflation and affordability crisis after the COVID recession; a cultural backlash to identity politics and advances for women, especially among young men; disinformation and social media; a growing political divide between those with and without post-secondary education, and; the failures of social democratic and liberal parties that associated themselves with neoliberal globalization and abandoned the working class.

But there is another less discussed yet important factor in the drift of working class voters away from traditional values and politics—the problematic role and capacity of trade unions and the labour movement to influence working class political outlooks and choices.

It should be no surprise that trade unions have been unable to slow or reverse dealignment in working class politics. Put simply, the large majority of private sector workers are non-union and, with few exceptions, do not receive political education, information or recommendations from unions. In North America, it is rare for the political perspectives, policies and arguments of unions to reach a majority working class audience.

Perhaps more problematic is the absence of an overarching labour movement consensus on working class politics itself, including its defining characteristics, political capacities and engagement and the high level of political solidarity and cohesive strategies that flow from this foundation.

In March, on the eve of Canada’s consequential upcoming federal election, the Canadian Labour Congress announced its “Workers Together” election platform. “We urge all political parties and candidates to make clear commitments to defend Canadian jobs and protect workers and their families from the crushing pressure of this economic war,” said CLC President Bea Bruske. The platform is comprehensive and brings together demands for urgent actions to support workers during the trade war with the United States, as well as a lengthy and impressive agenda of labour movement policies on health care and social services, economic development, taxes and labour rights. There are new and bold demands, including price controls on food and essential goods and an innovative “job guarantee,” or continuing education for every young worker within three years of high school graduation.

Much of the CLC platform overlaps with what could be expected from the New Democratic Party platform, but does not include any party endorsement. The CLC had the unenviable task of forging a relevant campaign from a diversity of ideological and political trends and regional contexts of Canada’s labour movement. The Congress........

© Canadian Dimension