Stephen McGonagle (17 November 1914 – 4 March 2002) was a

Northern Irish The people of Northern Ireland are all people born in Northern Ireland and having, at the time of their birth, at least one parent who is a British Nationality Law, British citizen, an Irish nationality law, Irish citizen or is otherwis ...

and 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 ...

ist. Born in

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry, is the second-largest City status in the United Kingdom, city in Northern Ireland, and the fifth-largest on the island of Ireland. Located in County Londonderry, the city now covers both banks of the River Fo ...

, Ireland, McGonagle worked as a plumber.Andrew Finlay, ''Saothar'', Vol. 27, pp.10-12, Irish Labour History Society He joined the Derry Labour Party, a small anti-partitionist grouping, but resigned in 1946 in protest at its alliance with the Nationalist Party, instead joining the

Northern Ireland Labour Party The Northern Ireland Labour Party (NILP) was a political party in Northern Ireland which operated from 1924 until 1987. Origins The roots of the NILP can be traced back to the formation of the Belfast Labour Party in 1892. Previously, in 1885 ...

. However, this party became increasingly unionist in outlook, so in 1949 he resigned to join the Irish Labour Party. Active in the

National Union of Tailors and Garment Workers The National Union of Tailors and Garment Workers (NUTGW) was a trade union in the United Kingdom. History The union was founded as the Tailors and Garment Workers' Union (T&GWU) in 1920 with the merger of the Scottish Operative Tailors and T ...

, and became secretary of its Derry branch in 1949. In 1952, he persuaded the majority of its members - around 4,000 mostly female workers - to break away and form the Clothing Workers' Union, which soon merged with the Irish Transport and General Workers' Union, and in 1954 McGonagle became secretary of its Derry branch. McGonagle stood as an

independent Labour The Independent Labour Party (ILP) was a British political party of the left, established in 1893 at a conference in Bradford, after local and national dissatisfaction with the Liberals' apparent reluctance to endorse working-class candidate ...

candidate in Foyle at the 1958 and 1962 Northern Ireland general elections. He took approximately 40% of the vote and second place on each occasion, behind Eddie McAteer. He stood on a platform advocating the reunification of Ireland, the ending of religious discrimination, and action on social issues. In 1968, McGonagle was the chairman of the Northern Ireland Committee of 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). Later in the year, following civil unrest in Derry, he was appointed vice-chairman of a new Development Commission, which replaced the city's local government. He resigned in 1971, along with the other

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

members of the commission, following the introduction of

internment Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without Criminal charge, charges or Indictment, intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects ...

without trial. Following the 1972 death of Jim Cox, President of the ICTU, McGonagle took up the post, and he was re-elected to serve in 1973. In 1974, he took up a post as Northern Ireland Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration and Complaints, serving for five years, while in 1977 he became chairman of the Northern Ireland Police Complaints Board. He also chaired the 1982 inquiry into the Kincora Boys' Home scandal. In 1983, he was appointed to the

Seanad Éireann Seanad Éireann ( ; ; "Senate of Ireland") is the senate of the Oireachtas (the Irish legislature), which also comprises the President of Ireland and Dáil Éireann (defined as the house of representatives). It is commonly called the Seanad or ...

, and facing opposition from unionists, resigned all his public posts in Northern Ireland. While an

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States * Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...

member of the Seanad, he participated in the New Ireland Forum as part of the Irish Labour Party team. McGonagle's grandson, Owen Reidy, later also became a prominent trade unionist, as general secretary of the ICTU. He died on 4 March 2002, aged 87.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mcgonagle, Stephen 1914 births 2002 deaths Independent members of Seanad Éireann Ombudsmen in Northern Ireland Trade unionists from County Londonderry Members of the 17th Seanad People from Derry (city) Presidents of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions Nominated members of Seanad Éireann