Standing Strong Reviewed by Debbie McClure 1978 was a time of great music and even greater changes. Women in male-dominated workplaces, such as auto plants, were often considered subpar or “unskilled workers” and not particularly valuable employees. Women were still fighting for fair living wages, challenging sexual harassment in the workplace, unsafe working conditions, and bosses who discounted their value. Standing strong with a union was seen as traitorous to the companies that refused to allow workers to vote for a union. Women workers who wanted a strong union were often harshly targeted. Striking was the only way these workers could force companies to come to the bargaining table in good faith and truly listen. Women often formed strong bonds with their co-workers, and it’s against this background of turmoil that the characters and storyline develop. When housewife Maeve (played by Madison Hayes-Crook) decides to take on a job to help with household finances, she walks into a new world. While her husband is away on an extended job posting with the RCMP, Maeve’s confidence in herself takes root. Working at a small auto-wiring plant isn’t easy, but the friendships that are formed between the women Maeve works with are as enduring and as strong as the women themselves. Canadian labour history is unfolding, and Maeve and her friends must decide which side of the picket line they’re going to be on. Friendships grow, and others splinter as each woman is forced to confront her own personal struggles and decide whether to defy a company that refuses to listen. Sisters of ‘78 is based on the true story of the Fleck Strike of 1978 that shook the community of Centralia. Several of the original strikers were in the audience, reminding the rest of us that these events shaped the way ...