1929

In 1929, the stock market crashed and the Great Depression arrived in Hamilton, and to much surprise, the steel industry was viewed by some as a saving grace.  Hamilton's industrialization brought prosperity to the city and was a source of pride for residents. As a result, the environmental destruction and health consequences were considered secondary to the economic advantage that had been gained. Stelco and the Dominion Foundries and Steel Company (presently known as Dofasco) were the two major steel companies, however, Stelco dominated economically during this time. Stelco had developed to be much larger and remained profitable throughout the Great Depression.

 

In Hamilton, 51% of men and 33% of women lost their jobs or had their working hours drastically reduced during the Great Depression.  Unemployment was so prevalent that one individual claimed:

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In the face of such unemployment, positions within the steel industry stayed relatively constant.  Stelco was an extremely dependable company and, through the Great Depression, maximized the number of workers they could keep through job-sharing.  Its success during this time can be partially attributed to the technological advancements that occurred in the 1920s allowing the company to manufacture a more diverse range of products.  An additional contributor to its resilience during the Great Depression was the location of Hamilton Harbour because major customers were within a few miles or even a few hundred yards of the shore. In fact, Hamilton was referred to by some as the “Birmingham of Canada” as it was seen as comparable to the British industrial city, which also held a geographical advantage.  A structural steel worker by the name of Greg Earlton confirms these sentiments as he states the following in an interview: 

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Job insecurity can be extremely harmful to health, particularly concerning mental health and the strong correlation between increased rates of unemployment and increased rates of suicide (Figure 1).  In 1929, rates of unemployment skyrocketed and rates of suicide followed. This trend is particularly prevalent among men as, at the time, they made up a larger portion of the workforce.  Overall, there is a significant relationship between economic crises and mental health problems.

 

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Figure 1: Rates of male suicide (top blue line) and female suicide (bottom green line) in comparison to rates of unemployment (middle red line) from the years 1900 to 2018 in the United States. A large spike can be seen in the rates of unemployment during the Great Depression (1929 to 1939) which is mirrored by an increase in male rates of suicide. Female rates of suicide did not peak as, at the time, fewer women were in the workforce and consequently, fewer women suffered from job insecurity.

 

The steel industry in Hamilton could be viewed as protecting the mental health of residents by providing secure work throughout the years of the Great Depression – something that workers in other industries could not rely on.   While this degree of economic collapse inevitably slowed down the steel market to some extent, mental health effects among workers were mitigated through job protection. Interestingly, during the recession of 1980, pollution levels were reported to have declined due to the lower rates of economic and industrial activity.  While there is no record of this for the 1929 collapse, it can be extrapolated that a similar outcome may have occurred. Therefore, it is possible that emissions were lower in the 1930s during the Great Depression than they were in years prior. Nonetheless, the eventual end of the Great Depression was soon followed by the start of the Second World War which catapulted steel production and rates of pollution to reach an all-time high.