In this comparative study, Fulcher reassesses existing theories of industrial conflict class organization, and State intervention, taking the history of industrial relations in Britain and Sweden as a case study. Using Barrington Moore's notion of "supressed historical alternatives," the author explores the origins of the organization and institutional differences between the two countries, finding unexpected and overlooked parallels in their histories; he analyses the attempts to establish corporatism in both countries, their eventual failure in Sweden as well as in Britain, and the ensuing struggle between alternatives offered by the left and the right.