Cathy Mulroy was one of the first women hired into a non-traditional job at Sudbury mining giant Inco after World War II. At the suggestion of one of the union leaders, Debbie Field and four others broke barriers to work in the smelting area of the steel giant Stelco in Hamilton. In this interview they discuss their experiences working in these companies and with their unions, as well as the impact this work had on each of their lives.

“It was about one o’clock in the morning, this man from our shift shows up, banging on my front door, saying, open up this door, you fucking union bitch. So I got my gun.”