Year: 2023
Location: Edmonton
Profile: Stennie Noel arrived in Canada from Trinidad & Tobago in 1974. After receiving certification in welding/pipefitting, he moved to Edmonton. He joined both the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 955 and the International Brotherhood of Boilermakers, Local 146. He worked on contracts for Syncrude in Fort McMurray until the early 1980s recession and then for several Local 146 contractors across the province. He experienced racial incidents on several job sites and as he searched for housing in Edmonton.
An active union member, Noel has promoted better health and safety standards. He comments on the era that preceded required safety harnesses. He has represented Local 146 at conferences in the US.
Noel is a leading member of Edmonton’s Caribbean community. He has welded many costumes for the Cariwest Festival, and performed in the festivals in his role as “king.” Noel was an award-winning musician in Trinidad and Tobago where he perfected his drumming skills, playing an instrument that was banned under colonialism. He currently performs in the Wajjo Drumers, has toured internationally, and composes and sings calypso. He is the dad of a Dene daughter.
Keywords: Boilermakers Local 146; Caribbean community; Caribbean-Indigenous relations; Cariwest; Envirofuels; Musician; Operating Engineers Local 955; Powerplants; Syncrude; Welder.
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See also: Black Communities in Alberta; International Brotherhood of Boilermakers; International Union of Operating Engineers; Occupational Health and Safety in Alberta; Systemic Racism in Alberta