Skip to main content

Belfast’s Shipyard Workers: a Study in Organised Labour

  • Chapter
A Tale of Three Cities
  • 34 Accesses

Abstract

How did the growth of trade unionism affect industrial relations within specific industries? I have selected as my basic case study the workers employed in the Belfast shipyards. This group were certainly highly unionised, containing a high proportion of skilled workers, and are often presented as an ‘aristocracy of labour’. Were all those employed in the shipyards members of the privileged elite or were there divisions within the labour force? What problems faced the unions in ‘organising’ these workers? Were industrial relations within the industry improved or harmed by the unionisation of the labour force? My intention is to use this group as a sample against which, in a later chapter I will compare other groups within the labour force.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

eBook
USD 16.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Preview

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Copyright information

© 1998 John Lynch

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Lynch, J. (1998). Belfast’s Shipyard Workers: a Study in Organised Labour. In: A Tale of Three Cities. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-14599-7_5

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-14599-7_5

  • Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, London

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-349-14601-7

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-349-14599-7

  • eBook Packages: Palgrave History CollectionHistory (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics