This is a new edition of Emmet O'Connor's classic and pioneering work on Irish labour history, providing an introduction for the general reader and a synopsis for the specialist. The first edition, which covered 1824 to 1960, has been updated to 2000 with the inclusion of three new chapters on developments in the Republic and Northern Ireland. In addition to providing a challenging overview of labour's past, O'Connor addresses industrial relations and political issues of contemporary relevance. He has taken full account of new research on Labour and argued that events in Ireland can only be understood in an international context. The text also features pen portraits of over fifty leading personalities of the left and the trade union movement. This book will be indispensable to undergraduates, labour activists, and those interested in labour's place in modern Ireland.