Biographical entry Considine, Michael Patrick (c. 1885 - 1959)

Summary

Believed to have been born on the 26th January 1885, Michael Considine was brought from Ireland to New South Wales by his mother when he was five years old. Considine became prominent in union affairs during the tramway workers' strike of 1908. In 1910 he was jailed for six months for demonstrating against the NSW state government's Industrial Disputes Act and the jailing of Peter Bowling. After his release, Considine worked for a time on the wharfs before moving to Broken Hill where he found work as a greaser. Joining the militant Amalgamated Miners' Association, Considine was the union's president just a few years later whilst the country was in the midst of the First World War. In 1916 he was largely responsible for achieving a forty-four hour week for underground miners. Entering politics in 1917, Considine was immediately successful in winning the Federal seat of Barrier but internal strife within the Labor Party saw him resign from the Party late in 1920. Having moved to Melbourne in 1927 Considine found work with the Melbourne & Metropolitan Tramways Board and was also a delegate for several unions on the Melbourne Trades Hall Council. Mick Considine died on 2 November 1959.

Related entries

Archival resources

National Library of Australia Manuscript Collection

• Michael Patrick Considine - Newspaper cuttings, [19--], 1900? - 1950?, MS 2221; National Library of Australia Manuscript Collection. Details

Published resources

Book Sections

• Reid, John, 'Considine, Michael Patrick', in Australian Dictionary of Biography, vol. 8, Melbourne University Press, Melbourne, 1981, p. 92. Details