Royal Commission to Investigate the Demands of the Coal Miners of Western Canada : The Royal Commission to Investigate the Demands of the Coal Miners of Western Canada was established under Order in Council, P.C. 8020, 14 October 1943, under Part I of the Inquiries Act (R.S.C. 1927, c.99) and on the recommendation of the Minister of Labour. By Order in Council P.C. 8620, 10 November 1943, the Commission was granted the powers and authority of a Regional War Labour Board as constituted under provisions of the Wartime Wages Control Order. The Commission was mandated to inquire into the wage rates paid to persons employed in the operation of coal mines in the provinces of Alberta and British Columbia and into all matters relevant to or affecting the application of the Wartime Wages Control Order (Order in Council, P.C. 5963 of July 10, 1942) in respect thereof and to report to the Minister of Labour and the National War Labour Board together with such recommendations as to measures to be taken in accordance with the principles and provisions of the Wartime Wages Control Order as the Commissioners deemed advisable. The commissioners were G.B. O'Connor, Chairman, T.W. Laidlaw and L.D. Hyndman. The secretary was F.E. Harrison.
On 21 September 1943, employees of the bituminous coal mines of Alberta and British Columbia voted to go on strike. The miners, represented by District 18, United Mine Workers of America (UMWA), demanded wage increases, two weeks' holidays with pay and overtime after a five-day work week. The UMWA maintained that the wages of coal miners in District 18 were less than those of coal miners in the United States. It also asserted that workers were leaving the mines and finding employment in other industries which offered higher pay.
The Western Canada Bituminous Coal Operators Association refused to negotiate with the UMWA because under the Wartime Wages Control Order only the National War Labour Board had authority to investigate wage conditions and labour relations in Canada.
The wages of coal miners, which had been set by an agreement of May 1938, as revised in April 1940, and August 1941, were to remain in effect until one year after the duration of the Second World War. In this case, the National War Labour Board had not received an application from the UMWA for a wage increase.
The Department of Labour tried without success to have the operators of coal mines meet with union officials for the purpose of negotiating differences between them. Moreover, the Department urged the UMWA to file an application of its demands with the National War Labour Board. But, the Union insisted that unless increased wages were offered to the miners they would go on strike. A strike in the coal mining industry could lead to fuel shortages which would be unfortunate during the winter season. Moreover, the government considered coal as an essential commodity particularly for the production of munitions, and it was determined to maintain an adequate supply.
On 27 September, the Minister of Labour, Humphrey Mitchell, appointed G.B. O'Connor of the Western War Labour Board, and F.E. Harrison of the Department of Labour, as Industrial Disputes Inquiry Commissioners to investigate the dispute. But, their attempt to avert a strike failed and the miners planned to walk out on 15 October. The strike was called off because on 14 October the Government of Canada appointed a royal commission under the chairmanship of G.B. O'Connor, to inquire into wage rates of the coal miners in Alberta and British Columbia. The inquiry barely got started, however, when it suspended work. On 29 October, the Minister of Labour was advised by telegram from the President of District 18, UMWA, Robert Livett that the miners would go out on strike unless the Order in Council setting up the royal commission was changed so that the commission would not have to report directly to the National War Labour Board.
In order to resolve this issue, the Minister of Labour invited officials of the UMWA to Ottawa during the first week of November 1943, for a conference. The union agreed to meet with the Minister but nevertheless sent out strike notices and, on 31 October, the employees of the coal mining companies, representing some 8,500 men in Alberta and British Columbia, went out on strike.
On 6 November an agreement was reached between the Department of Labour and the UMWA. The miners would return to work and the royal commission would be given the powers and authority of a Regional War Labour Board for the purposes of investigating the union's demands. This meant that coal miners and operators would have the right to appeal the recommendations of the royal commission to the National War Labour Board. By virtue of this agreement, the royal commission resumed its work, on 10 November 1943, and by 15 November, all the strikers were back at work. (See Labour Gazette, Vol. XLIII, October, 1943, pp. 1371-1372, November 1943, pp. 1520-1521 and December 1943, pp. 1632-1635).
Hearings of the commission were held in Calgary and Edmonton from 29 October 1943 to 18 January 1944. RG33-97 General Inventory
