Serial S480 - Information and Research Bulletin

The Melbourne Trades Hall Committee grew from the historic winning of the eight-hour day by the Melbourne building trades in 1856. In that year the Melbourne Trades Hall Committee was formed to receive a grant of land on which the world's first Trades Hall, or 'Workers' Parliament', was built in 1859. Initially the Trades Hall's industrial role was limited, but a resurgence of industrial activity in the 1880s resulted in it collecting evidence for the Shops and Factories Royal Commission and taking control of major strikes. In 1884 the Committee became a Council to better reflect this expanding industrial role. The title Victorian Trades Hall Council was eventually adopted in 1970.