Joseph Morris (14 June 1913 – 11 October 1996) was a Canadian

trade unionist A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and Employee ben ...

mostly noted as the president of the

Canadian Labour Congress The Canadian Labour Congress, or CLC (french: Congrès du travail du Canada, link=no or ) is a national trade union centre, the central labour body in Canada to which most Canadian labour unions are affiliated. History Formation The CLC was ...

in the 1970s.

Early life

Born in England, he immigrated to

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

in 1929 where he worked as a logger. He joined the trade union movement, first with a union of unemployed workers and then with the Lumber and Sawmill Workers Union in 1934. The union later joined the

International Woodworkers of America International Woodworkers of America (IWA) was an industrial union of lumbermen, sawmill workers, timber transportation workers and others formed in 1937. History The IWA was formed when members of the Sawmill and Timber Workers’ Union divis ...

(IWA) and he became a leader in the movement rising to the position of president of Local 1-80 in 1948.

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

interrupted his life, just like everyone else's in that time. He joined the

Canadian Army The Canadian Army (french: Armée canadienne) is the command responsible for the operational readiness of the conventional ground forces of the Canadian Armed Forces. It maintains regular forces units at bases across Canada, and is also respo ...

, and was given the commission of

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often sub ...

IWA and CLC years

An anti-Communist in the union movement, Morris was active in opposing Communist Party activists in the IWA when he returned from serving in

and became the IWA's regional president for Western Canada in 1953. He left his IWA position in 1962 to become executive vice-president of the

serving until 1974 when he became CLC president. In 1976, he led the CLC in a national day of protest involving one million workers going on a one-day

general strike A general strike refers to a strike action in which participants cease all economic activity, such as working, to strengthen the bargaining position of a trade union or achieve a common social or political goal. They are organised by large co ...

against wage and price controls being implemented by the Liberal government of

Pierre Trudeau Joseph Philippe Pierre Yves Elliott Trudeau ( , ; October 18, 1919 – September 28, 2000), also referred to by his initials PET, was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 15th prime minister of Canada The prime mini ...

. He also served as vice-president of the

International Confederation of Free Trade Unions The International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) was an international trade union. It came into being on 7 December 1949 following a split within the World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU), and was dissolved on 31 October 2006 when ...

in the 1970s and presided over two International Trade Union Conferences for Action Against

Apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...

held in Geneva in 1973 and 1977. In 1977, Morris was elected chairman of the governing body

International Labour Organization The International Labour Organization (ILO) is a United Nations agency whose mandate is to advance social and economic justice by setting international labour standards. Founded in October 1919 under the League of Nations, it is the first and o ...

, the first Canadian labour leader to hold the position. He retired as CLC president in 1978.

Post CLC career

For his many years of national and international service to the labour movement, he was appointed an

Officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," fro ...

of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the ...

on June 25, 1978. For his service in international human rights and labour circles, Morris was promoted, on June 25, 1984, to highest class of the Order of Canada: Companion. In later life he served on the Independent Commission on International Development Issues (the Brandt Commission) and on the boards of the

Bank of Canada The Bank of Canada (BoC; french: Banque du Canada) is a Crown corporation and Canada's central bank. Chartered in 1934 under the ''Bank of Canada Act'', it is responsible for formulating Canada's monetary policy,OECD. OECD Economic Surveys: Ca ...

and the

BC Ferries British Columbia Ferry Services Inc., operating as BC Ferries (BCF), is a former provincial Crown corporation, now operating as an independently managed, publicly owned Canadian company. BC Ferries provides all major passenger and vehicle ferry ...

Corporation. He had a heart attack on 8 October 1996, and died at the Royal Jubilee Hospital in

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

on 11 October 1996.

Reference and notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Morris, Joe Companions of the Order of Canada Morris, Joseph (Joe) Morris, Joseph (Joe) Presidents of the Canadian Labour Congress People from Lancashire (before 1974) British emigrants to Canada Canadian loggers Trade unionists from Lancashire Trade unionists from British Columbia International Woodworkers of America people Canadian Army personnel of World War II Canadian Army officers