In August 1907, Marie took part in a ten-day strike by workers who wanted to express their dissatisfaction with the company. This was not the first time a strike had brought the mill's activities to a halt; since 1900, there had been five others. This time, the workers complained that certain changes in the distribution of work had cancelled out the effects of a ten percent wage increase awarded several months earlier. In addition, they accused the manager of firing workers because of their union activities and accused the foreman of mistreating workers. In the sketch, a group of strikers are keeping watch on all approaches to the mill; not one worker was a strike-breaker during the ten days the strike lasted. A grievance committee made up of representatives from each department expressed its willingness to begin negotiations with the company to have the workers return to work.
Courtesy: La Patrie, August 14, 1907, p. 12 and August 21, 1907, p. 1.
