Tony Corcoran examines the magnitude of the operation of Guinness’s St. James’s Gate Brewery, and the working lives of the thousands of Dubliners who have depended on Guinness for their livelihood, either directly or indirectly. The company’s unusually progressive treatment of its workers—health care, training and housing --- is revealed in detail, as is the Guinness family’s philanthropy and compassion towards the less well-off residents of the city.