The struggle over worker leisure: an analysis of the history of the workers' sports association in Canada

Abstract

Discussions of the work-leisure relationship focus largely on issues of work-life balance and generally ignore the possibility of employer-sponsored leisure being used as a means of workplace or societal control of workers. The Workers' Sports Association (WSA), active in Canada between 1924 and 1935, challenged this use of leisure by the state and the elite, including employers. The WSA's goal was to use sport and leisure opportunities as a means of political education for workers, and to act as opposition to employer- and state-controlled “bosses' sport.” The WSA, while ultimately unsuccessful, raised still-important questions about the uses of leisure in relation to the workplace and society at large. Copyright © 2010 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.