No Power Greater: A History of Union Action in Australia

How Australian unions shaped modern Australian society

Unions are making a comeback. Labour disputes around the world have hit the headlines as unions take action to challenge inequality. But while media coverage has increased, understanding of unions has not. In this lively history of Australian unionism Liam Byrne seeks to illuminate what unionism means, exploring why successive generations of working people organised unions and nurtured them for future generations. Foregrounding the pioneering efforts of women workers, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander workers, culturally and linguistically diverse workers, and LGBTIQA+ workers as central to the union story today, Byrne uses case studies of worker action and struggle to better understand the lived reality of unionism, its challenges, and its contribution to Australian life. No Power Greater is the compelling story of the acts of rebellion and solidarity that have shaped Australia's past and shows that unions are far from history.

About the author:

Liam Byrne is a biographer and political historian, and has written on Australian politics and history for the Guardian, The Age, the Sydney Morning Herald, the South China Morning Post, The Conversation, and others. Byrne’s first book, Becoming John Curtin and James Scullin: the Making of the Modern Labor Party, was published by Melbourne University Press in 2020.

Product details:

Author: Liam Byrne

Publisher: Melbourne University Press

Pages: 312

Format: Paperback

Publication date: 14 May 2025

ISBN: 9780522879292