Harold O'Sullivan (1924 – 20 October 2009) was an Irish

trade union A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...

leader and local historian. Born in

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

, O'Sullivan was educated at a Christian Brothers school, then joined the

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during The Emergency, serving in the Cavalry Corps. In 1946, he left the Army to work for

Bord na Móna Bord na Móna (; English: "The Peat Board") is a semi-state company in Ireland, created in 1946 by the Turf Development Act 1946. The company began developing the peatlands of Ireland with the aim to provide economic benefit for Irish Midland co ...

, also joining the Local Government and Public Services Union (LGPSU). He soon transferred to work for

Kildare County Council Kildare County Council () is the Local government in the Republic of Ireland, local authority of County Kildare, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. As a county council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. The council is responsible for ...

as a health inspector, then moved to

Dundalk Dundalk ( ; ) is the county town of County Louth, Ireland. The town is situated on the Castletown River, which flows into Dundalk Bay on the north-east coast of Ireland, and is halfway between Dublin and Belfast, close to and south of the bor ...

to work for Louth County Council.Former Ictu leader who helped shape massive 1979 PAYE worker protests
, ''

Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It was launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is Ireland's leading n ...

'', 31 October 2009 O'Sullivan gradually came to prominence in the LGPSU, serving on its executive committee and as president from 1962 before he was elected as general secretary in 1964, in which role he was known for his calls for a national wages policy. He devoted much time to the

Irish Congress of Trade Unions The Irish Congress of Trade Unions (often abbreviated to just Congress or ICTU), formed in 1959 by the merger of the Irish Trades Union Congress (founded in 1894) and the Congress of Irish Unions (founded in 1945), is a national trade union cent ...

(ICTU), serving on its executive from 1968, as its first official representative to the

Union of Students in Ireland Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Unio ...

in 1972, and as President of ICTU in 1978. While in that post, he supported two large demonstrations in favour of a more

progressive tax A progressive tax is a tax in which the tax rate increases as the taxable amount increases. The term ''progressive'' refers to the way the tax rate progresses from low to high, with the result that a taxpayer's average tax rate is less than the ...

system, but withdrew support from a third. In 1983, O'Sullivan stood down from his trade union posts to join the

National Planning Board National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, c ...

. He later became acting director-general of the Institute for Industrial Research and Standards, and completed a master's degree and doctorate with

Trinity College Dublin Trinity College Dublin (), officially titled The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, and legally incorporated as Trinity College, the University of Dublin (TCD), is the sole constituent college of the Unive ...

, with a focus on Irish history. He published several books on local history, including ''History of Local Government in the County of Louth'' and ''John Bellew: a Seventeenth-Century Man of Many Parts''. O'Sullivan died in 2009. In 2016, a workspace in Louth County Library was dedicated to his memory.Special dedication at County Library for pioneering trade unionist Harold O'Sullivan
, '' Dundalk Democrat'', 15 April 2016

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:OSullivan, Harold 1924 births 2009 deaths Trade unionists from Dublin (city)