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The CFU was as much a social movement as a traditional trade union. With the help of the BC Teachers’ Federation and Frontier College, the union launched a pioneering and successful English as a Second Language (ESL) Crusade to teach Punjabi-speaking farm workers basic English.

Instructional videos were produced on the safe use of pesticides and other health and safety practices.

The Canadian Farmworkers Union ran English as a Second Languatge (ESL) classes for farmworkers, taught by volunteer tutors. The students were mainly Punjabi, mostly women, many in their fifties and sixties. Classes were in students’ houses. Craig Berggold photo, EPH0526-001, Canadian Farmworkers Union Collection, Simon Fraser University Library.
Photos-094, Canadian Farmworkers Union Collection, Simon Fraser University Library

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Union Zindabad! Copyright © 2022 by BC Labour Heritage Centre is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.

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