Post-war Irish immigration in Australia

Uses Richmond's conceptual framework on the nature of migration to examine Irish migration to Australia in the post-war era. From being the major non-British immigrant group until the end of the 19th century, the Irish have now become one of the smallest ethnic groups in Australia. Due to the transformation of Australian immigration policy during the post-war period, and the consequent development of a highly varied ethnic society, the Irish-born population in Australia constituted less than 2% of the immigrant population in 1981. This paper examines post-war trends in the context of changing Australian immigration policy. Particular attention is paid to the demographic composition and labour force characteristics of the Irish, and distinctions between immigrants from Northern Ireland and the Republic are drawn. Residential patterns and occupational networks of the Sydney Irish are examined in some detail to get behind the more aggregate census data. -from Author