[1] He started work early and held a variety of jobs until, in 1923, he was employed by the Irish Transport and General Workers' Union (ITGWU) as their full-time organiser in Wicklow.
Although he and a colleague were charged with conspiracy, [clarification needed] they were found not guilty, and Conroy continued his union career.
[2][3] As President of the union, Conroy focused on a programme of modernisation, along with campaigning for a national minimum wage.
[2] This accomplished, Conroy served as the first president of the new organisation, and discussed a merger of the ITGWU with Larkin's Workers' Union of Ireland, although this did not occur until many years later.
[citation needed] Conroy died 13 February 1969, aged 64, in the Adelaide Hospital, Dublin, after an illness, and was buried in Deans Grange Cemetery.