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Al King, a legend in BC Labour history, died in April in Vancouver. Al will be remembered for all his tireless work on behalf of his fellow union members, for his ferocious promotion of occupational health and safety and the fight against occupational disease, for his politics, and for his participation in one of the most interesting feuds in the history of the Labour Movement.

Al, who held vivid memories of most of the last 60 years, captured much of that history in a book he published in the 1990s, Red Bait. In it, Al chronicled the merger between the Steelworkers and the Mine Mill and Smelter Workers, particularly in Western Canada.

Al’s stories, whether in print or in conversation, are in fact riveting accounts of neglected events in Canada’s social history.

Like the struggles outlined in the book, Al King in person was an engaging, vigorous defender of workers’ rights, whether that was the battle for recognition of occupational cancers in mining or the building of the union (Local 480) at Cominco.

Al King was also a man of great integrity and honour. He demanded justice – and got it. He led the struggle to demand that employers clean up workplaces and that widows and their families be fairly compensated.

Al’s own family also deserves praise for supporting Al in all his causes. Our families at home and our union family are proof that none of us stands alone. It’s what being in a union is all about.

Al is survived by Lillian, his wife of 65 years, and children Wayne, Geri, Sherrill, Lorraine and Mavis, 16 grandchildren, 8 great-grandchildren, and dozens of relatives and friends.