About the IWW
The Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) was founded in 1905 as a revolutionary answer to the limitations and failures of mainstream unions. To this day, IWW members are organizing to win better conditions on the job, and to build a better, fairer world. We want our workplaces and industries run for the benefit of workers and communities, rather than for the interests of a handful of bosses and executives.
We are the Industrial Workers of the World because we organize industrially. This means that our aim is to organize all workers producing the same goods or providing the same services into one union, rather than dividing workers by skill or trade, so we can leverage our collective strength to win our demands together. Since our founding, we have made significant contributions to labour struggles around the world and have a proud tradition of organizing across gender, ethnic and racial lines — a tradition that began long before it was ever accepted as normal in society.
About Greater Toronto Area IWW
The Toronto IWW is a union open to any worker from all industries in the Greater Toronto Area. Our members work in many industries including education, transportation, social work, restaurants, tech, retail, health care, construction, and media. The IWW was founded in 1905 as an answer to the limitations and failures of mainstream unions and the GTA IWW has existed in various forms since 1978.
Learn more about the history of the IWW in Toronto and Ontario in our History section.
What sets the IWW apart?
We Are Member Run and Democratic
The IWW is organized “horizontally,” led and run by the members themselves. There is no union president and there are no bosses. All branch officers are unpaid volunteers, elected and recallable by the members. Every member of the IWW has a say and a vote on any decision that affects them.
We Practice Solidarity Unionism
Our power as workers comes from standing and fighting together in solidarity. Most other unions rely on legal frameworks that are stacked against workers. Instead, we keep the fight on the shop floor through direct action. We believe that a worker controlled union is the way to winning better conditions and workplace democracy.
We Organize Across Industries
Our aim is to organize every worker in any given workplace into a single union. We don't divide workers into different unions based on job description or craft. This wall-to-wall organizing strategy gives us the most leverage to win our demands. It allows us to support each other across industries and protects us from being pitted against each other by our bosses.
We Don’t Rely On Contract Negotiations to Win
Direct action is at the heart of our organizing strategy. We don’t rely on contracts to win demands. If workers ever decide the legal route is best for them, we will support them to win the best contract possible. However, a contract is only as strong as a union’s ability to enforce it. Our focus will always be on building worker solidarity, capacity and organizing skills.
We Know Every Worker is Worth Organizing
We practice Solidarity Unionism which is direct, democratic, and caring. Other unions are run like business. They rely on lawyers and staff to provide a service, who often make more than the workers they represent. These unions need to consider the return on investment whenever workers want to improve their working conditions. That expense is no guarantee of a win at all, and it also means that smaller shops and lower paid workers are often left behind. We do it because we care. We want to share our experience, teach you skills and show you how to win.
If you’re in the Toronto area or Southwest Ontario and want to organize at your job, fill out our Organizing Intake Form.
Outside of the Southwest Ontario? Contact the IWW Organizing Department Board here.
