Drawing on extensive archival research and interviews, UnionPower traces the development of the Niagara region's labourmovement from the early nineteenth century to the present.

From factory workers in Welland to retail workers in St. Catharines,from hospitality workers in Niagara Falls to migrant farm workers inNiagara-on-the-Lake, Union Power showcases the role of workingpeople in the Niagara region. Early industrial development and theappalling working conditions of the often vulnerable common labourerprompted a movement toward worker protection. Charting the developmentof the region's labour movement from the early nineteenth centuryto the present, Patrias and Savage illustrate how workers from thishighly diversified economy struggled to improve their lives both insideand outside the workplace.