Cissie Cahalan (1876 – 27 August 1948) was an Irish

trade unionist A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and Employee ben ...

feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...

, and

suffragette A suffragette was a member of an activist women's organisation in the early 20th century who, under the banner "Votes for Women", fought for the right to vote in public elections in the United Kingdom. The term refers in particular to members ...

Biography

Cahalan was born in either

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Tipperary Tipperary is the name of: Places *County Tipperary, a county in Ireland **North Tipperary, a former administrative county based in Nenagh **South Tipperary, a former administrative county based in Clonmel *Tipperary (town), County Tipperary's na ...

, and was the daughter of a school teacher. She worked in shops in the city of

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

, mostly at the department store chain

Arnotts Arnotts can refer to; * Arnott's Biscuits, an Australian biscuit and salted snack food company * Arnotts (Ireland), a department store in Dublin, Ireland * Arnotts (Scotland) Arnotts was a department store in Glasgow, Scotland. It became part o ...

. Cahalan participated in several activist movements. She was a member of the Irish Drapers' Assistants' Association (IDAA), and also the

Irish Women's Franchise League The Irish Women's Franchise League was an organisation for women's suffrage which was set up in Dublin in November 1908. Its founder members included Hanna Sheehy-Skeffington, Margaret Cousins, Francis Sheehy-Skeffington and James H. Cousins. Tho ...

(IWFL), beginning in 1908. Cahalan was described as one of the only women from a working-class background to have a major role in the Irish suffragette movement. In 1912 she headed the "Ladies Committee" of the Dublin branch of the IDAA, and also was a contributor to the journal run by the union. In the same year, she sought the support of the Dublin Trades' Council for

women's suffrage Women's suffrage is the right of women to vote in elections. Beginning in the start of the 18th century, some people sought to change voting laws to allow women to vote. Liberal political parties would go on to grant women the right to vot ...

, in her role as a delegate of the IWFL. Cahalan was on the executive committee of the IWFL from 1917–1918. At some point she also served as the secretary of the Irish Women's Franchise League. Also in 1917, she went to the

Irish Trades Union Congress The Irish Trades Union Congress (ITUC) was a union federation covering the island of Ireland. History Until 1894, representatives of Irish trade unions attended the British Trades Union Congress (TUC). However, many felt that they had little imp ...

as a delegate of the IDAA. She led a strike at Arnotts while she worked there, and succeeded in winning a 30% pay increase. Cahalan served as president of the IDAA three times, being elected in 1922, 1923, and 1924. As a part of the IDAA, she successfully campaigned for a minimum wage. From 1922 to 1923 she was also on the executive committee of the IDAA, but resigned in protest, citing the union's lack of action on imprisonment. She continued to work at her day job alongside her activist work until 1932, and also worked part-time at St Ultan's Hospital. She went on writing for the union journal in the 1930s. She was married to John Burns in 1932; Burns died four years later. She was a close friend of Irish nationalist and fellow suffragette

Hanna Sheehy-Skeffington Johanna Mary Sheehy Skeffington (née Sheehy; 24 May 1877 – 20 April 1946) was a suffragette and Irish nationalist. Along with her husband Francis Sheehy Skeffington, Margaret Cousins and James Cousins, she founded the Irish Women's Franchis ...

. She died on 27 August 1948.

Views

Cahalan had a well publicized debate with fellow suffragist

Louie Bennett Louie Bennett (Louisa Elizabeth Bennett; 1870 – 1956) was an Irish suffragette, trade unionist, journalist and writer. Born and raised in Dublin, she established the Irish Women's Suffrage Federation in 1911. She was a joint editor and contr ...

in 1919, over the subject of membership in trade unions. The debate took place in the form of writings in the newspaper ''

The Irish Citizen ''The Irish Citizen'' was founded in 1912 as the newspaper by the Irish Women's Franchise League. Its first editors were Francis Sheehy-Skeffington the writer, pacifist and suffragist, and James Cousins, James H. Cousins'The "Irish Citizen", 1912 ...

''. While Bennet advocated for separate unions for women, Cahalan was in favor of mixed unions, and placed the responsibility on women for failing to rise to positions of authority. Cahalan also argued that segregated unions would provide owners with a tool when disputes arose. In an article in ''The Irish Citizen'' Cahalan acknowledged that women's entry into unions had led to antagonism from male workers due to lower wages. However, she argued that: A staunch opponent of the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, Cahalan also saw it as an opportunity to improve working conditions for women, and joined the Women’s Employment Committee. She also believed in trade unions being open to all workers (including both men and women), and campaigned for equal pay for all workers.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cahalan, Cissie 1876 births 1948 deaths Irish women activists Women trade union leaders Irish suffragists Irish trade union leaders