Overview

• Ceremonies were held in New Waterford and other former coal towns to mark the centenary of William Davis’s 1925 shooting by a BESCO special constable.
• Union officials led by Danny Cavanaugh and Canadian Labour Congress president Bea Bruske used Davis Day events to highlight gaps in paid sick leave and living wages for workers.
• Davis’s killing at Waterford Lake catalyzed the collapse of the British Empire Steel Corporation, ended the company store system and paved the way for Nova Scotia’s Trade Union Act in 1937.
• Davis Day has evolved into Miners’ Memorial Day, serving as an annual remembrance for more than 2,500 coal miners killed in accidents or disasters since 1838.
• Organizers warned that Nova Scotia continues to face labor rights challenges as the sole remaining underground mine at Donkin has been suspended since 2023.