Militants, Mobsters and Mavericks

This is a gripping look at the underbelly of Toronto’s explosive postwar growth in the 1960s and 1970s, at a time when labour leaders, politicians, contractors and crime figures battled for control of the city’s booming construction industry.

Toronto’s highways, subways, and skyscrapers were built by immigrant workers under dangerous conditions, while they fought for fair wages and better safety measures. Militants, Mobsters and Mavericks recounts the story of fiery union leader Gerry Gallagher and his cerebral successor Giovanni Stefanini. Along with them comes a remarkable cast of Toronto figures of the era, including journalist-turned-politician Frank Drea, idealistic coroner Morton Shulman, and Hamilton Mafia boss Johnny Papalia. Bombings at job sites, workplace safety disasters claiming the lives of Italian and Portuguese workers, police battles with defiant union members — Gilberto Fernandes’s gripping and action-packed narrative captures the fierce struggles of the era.

This little-known history casts new light on the ongoing relations between provincial politicians and powerful construction unions, with their more than 75,000 Toronto-area members, today.