Marcel Pepin (February 28, 1926 – March 6, 2000) was a

trade union 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 benefits ( ...

ist in

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

, Canada. He was the president of the

Confédération des syndicats nationaux The Confédération des syndicats nationaux (CSN; Confederation of National Trade Unions) is the second largest trade union federation in Quebec by membership. History It was founded in Hull in 1921 as the ''Confédération des travailleurs c ...

from 1965 until 1976.

Biography

Pepin graduated with a master's degree in industrial relations from the faculty of social sciences at the

Université Laval Université Laval is a public research university in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. The university was founded by royal charter issued by Queen Victoria in 1852, with roots in the founding of the Séminaire de Québec in 1663 by François de Montmo ...

in 1949.Bernard Brody
À notre collègue Marcel Pepin (1926-2000)
in ''Forum'', Université de Montréal, April 17, 2000 (in French) He became negotiator for the textile workers and steelworkers federations of the CTCC. In 1961 he became the secretary general of the

(CSN). In 1965, he was elected president of the CSN, succeeding to

Jean Marchand Jean Marchand, (December 20, 1918 – August 28, 1988) was a French Canadian public figure, trade unionist and politician in Quebec, Canada. Life and career During the 1949 Asbestos Strike in Quebec, Marchand led the striking workers as ...

, who had left the CSN to join the

Liberal Party of Canada The Liberal Party of Canada (french: Parti libéral du Canada, region=CA) is a federal political party in Canada. The party espouses the principles of liberalism,McCall, Christina; Stephen Clarkson"Liberal Party". ''The Canadian Encyclopedia'' ...

. During Pepin's tenure as president, the CSN moved toward more radical orientations. In 1972, the three major labour federations of Quebec temporarily concerted their forces into a "common front" (''front commun'') during negotiations with the government of

Robert Bourassa Robert Bourassa (; July 14, 1933 – October 2, 1996) was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 22nd premier of Quebec from 1970 to 1976 and from 1985 to 1994. A member of the Liberal Party of Quebec, he served a total of just un ...

; Pepin and the two other union leaders recommended illegal strikes and defiance of court orders and they were sentenced to jail for those actions. In 1976, Pepin was succeeded by Norbert Rodrigue as president of the CSN. Pepin was president of the

World Confederation of Labour The World Confederation of Labour (WCL) was an international labour organization founded in 1920 and based in Europe. Totalitarian governments of the 1930s repressed the federation and imprisoned many of its leaders, limiting operations until the ...

from 1973 until 1981. From 1980 until 1990 Pepin taught at the school of industrial relations of the

Université de Montréal The Université de Montréal (UdeM; ; translates to University of Montreal) is a French-language public research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university's main campus is located in the Côte-des-Neiges neighborhood of Côte-de ...

.Marcel Pepin (1926-2000) Syndicaliste
in ''Bilan du siècle'', Université de Sherbrooke (in French) He retired in 1990. In 1979, Pepin and other trade unionists and academics published a manifesto for the creation of a socialist movement and in 1981 they founded a left-wing political party, the Mouvement socialiste. That party ran ten candidates in the 1985 and 1989 Quebec general elections, but it remained marginal and was dissolved around 1991. He was married to Lucie Dagenais. He had five children.

Notes and references

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pepin, Marcel Trade unionists from Quebec Université Laval alumni 1926 births 2000 deaths Academic staff of the Université de Montréal Confédération des syndicats nationaux