Restructuring Asbestos MINING in Western Canada

The cases of the asbestos‐mining towns of Cassiar in northern British Columbia and Clinton Creek, Yukon, are discussed in order to develop a framework for analysing the restructuring of the Canadian mining industry. Special reference is made to Massey and Meegan's (1982) analytical framework of the anatomy of job loss. We argue that restructuring in the mining industry is understood best through detailed locality studies of companies and company towns. Specific instances of production reorganization are described and discussed with reference to the cyclical nature of the industry, the realities of the world market‐place, and the health problems inherent in the production and use of asbestos.