World of Work in Northern Ireland

Violence, emigration, the growth of public sector

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(1970 – 1994)

The Northern Ireland economy, after about 1970, was increasingly affected by the consequences of the impact of political instability and related violence, most siginificantly when the regional Government was suspended and political authority transferred to Westminster.

(Spotlight - 1975: A look at how the local tourist and entertainment industry suffered as a result of the Troubles.)

A perverse feature of this period was the increase in the number of people employed as an aspect of the unstable political environment with several thousand people recruited to enhance security and many others were needed in the repair of damage to buildings and the infrastructure.

This added to the number of workers in public services such as health, education and public administration which was always proportionately higher in Northern Ireland than other parts of the UK.

An unusual feature was the big increase in the number of people who emigrated from Northern Ireland: an annual average of 7,000 emigrants in the 1960’s rose to an annual average of 12,000 from 1971-1976 and then remained higher than in the 1960’s for the rest of the 1970s.

The critical date for the economy was the accession of the UK and Ireland to the EU from January 1973 with the most conspicuous impact of EU membership has been for the farming community. 

The Common Agricultural Policy, with intervention prices, levies and milk production quotas changed the decision making environment for food prices and farm economics – and employment in the farming sector continued to decline.

Less conspicuous, but no less important, Northern Ireland businesses have enjoyed the impact of the Single European Market which offers a wider opportunity for competitive businesses in a more harmonised business environment.

At this time, Short Brothers had become the largest local industrial concern and was financially supported by Government until 1989 when it was sold to Bombardier of Canada. 

The closure of textile and clothing firms in the 1990s and more recently has been dramatic - employment in textiles and clothing fell sharply at the same time as a successful period of rationalisation in food processing businesses. 

Beef, poultry and milk businesses modernised, rationalised and captured market share in Great Britain. 

Firms such as the Foyle Food Group, Dunbia and Hilton Foods have become large suppliers of beef in the UK and Ireland. Poultry processing has consolidated in O’Kane Poultry and Moy Park. Dairy specialisms have evolved at businesses such as United Dairy Farmers, Fane Valley and Kerry Foods.

New frontiers opened up with the development of specialist manufacturers in the pharmaceutical sectors including Norbrook Laboratories in Newry, Randox Laboratories in Crumlin and in Galen in Craigavon. 

Galen was sold to new owners and moved most production to the United States but, as a related development, advanced medical science work is being developed in Almac, which acquired some of the Galen activities and has taken this into new areas.

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