The Perth Trades Hall is a historic trades hall building in

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

, Western Australia that has been occupied by various organisations of the Western Australian

trade union A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...

movement. The building is now the WA headquarters of the

Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union The Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union (CFMMEU, though most commonly still referred to as CFMEU) is Australia's main trade union in construction, forestry, maritime, mining, energy, textile, clothing and footwear producti ...

(CFMEU).

Building history

Although the

Trades and Labour Council A labour council, trades council or industrial council is an association of labour unions or union branches in a given area. Most commonly, they represent unions in a given geographical area, whether at the district, city, region, or provincial or ...

(TLC) was established in Perth in 1891, finances to build a trades hall were not available until 1911, when

Alick McCallum Alexander McCallum (28 October 1877 – 12 July 1937) was an Australian politician. He was the Labor member for South Fremantle in the Western Australian Legislative Assembly from 1921 to 1935. He served as Minister for Works from 1924 to 1 ...

became general secretary of the Australian Labour Federation, as the TLC was then called. Design and construction of the original trades hall building was largely due to the efforts of Ernest Henshaw. The three-storey neo-Georgian building was erected at 80

Beaufort Street Beaufort Street is a major road in the inner north-eastern suburbs of Perth, Western Australia, connecting the Morley area to the Perth central business district. For most of its length, it is a single-carriageway, two-way road with two lanes i ...

, the site of Perth's original Scotch College. The foundation stone was laid by Prime Minister

Andrew Fisher Andrew Fisher (29 August 186222 October 1928) was an Australian politician who served three terms as prime minister of Australia – from 1908 to 1909, from 1910 to 1913, and from 1914 to 1915. He was the leader of the Australian Labor Party ...

on 8 August 1911. The hall was officially opened on 20 April 1912 by

John Scaddan John Scaddan, CMG (4 August 1876 – 21 November 1934), popularly known as "Happy Jack", was Premier of Western Australia from 7 October 1911 until 27 July 1916. Early life John Scaddan was born in Moonta, South Australia, into a Cornish A ...

, who was the

premier of Western Australia The premier of Western Australia is the head of government of the state of Western Australia. The role of premier at a state level is similar to the role of the prime minister of Australia at a federal level. The premier leads the executive bra ...

and a former trades hall secretary. In 1985 the building was sold and became the Delaney Gallery. The WA Heritage Council has listed it as Heritage Place No. 8783: Delaney Gallery (Trades Hall). A 2010 photograph in the register shows that the name "Trades Hall" has been reinstated above the portico. A new "Perth Trades Hall", at Unity House, 77-79 Stirling Street, was opened on

May Day May Day is a European festival of ancient origins marking the beginning of summer, usually celebrated on 1 May, around halfway between the spring equinox and summer solstice. Festivities may also be held the night before, known as May Eve. T ...

2000. It provided offices and meeting rooms for trade unions, the

Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party (ALP), also simply known as Labor, is the major centre-left political party in Australia, one of two major parties in Australian politics, along with the centre-right Liberal Party of Australia. The party forms the f ...

and other community and political groups. The TLC, now known as

UnionsWA UnionsWA is the peak Trades and Labour Council in Western Australia. It represents over 30 affiliated unions, which have over 150,000 members in Western Australia. The council is affiliated with the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU). Na ...

, relocated in 2007 to the CSA Building at 445 Hay Street, Perth. WA Labor relocated to new headquarters on 54 Cheriton St, Perth, alongside

United Voice United Voice was a large Australian trade union, with over 130,000 members. United Voice members worked in a wide range of occupations including hospitality, childcare, teachers' aides, aged care, property services (cleaning, security, maintenan ...

. In 2013 the building was purchased by the

CFMEU The Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union (CFMMEU, though most commonly still referred to as CFMEU) is Australia's main trade union in construction, forestry, maritime, mining, energy, textile, clothing and footwear producti ...

Western Australia so that the building would once again be used for its intended purpose of trade union business. A significant renovation process was undertaken by union workers restoring the building as far as possible to its original condition, with modern facilities provided for staff. On 29 June 2014 the building was re-opened by Michael O'Connor, the national secretary of the combined CFMEU National Divisions. At the official reopening he unveiled a plaque bearing the inscription "Back in the Hands of those who built it". The building now not only houses the CFMEU, but is regularly used by like-minded organisations as a meeting venue.

References

External links

{{Commons category
Alex McCallum biography

State Heritage Register entry
30 July 2004, at State Heritage Office
Assessment documentation
30 July 2004, at State Heritage Office
New Trades Hall: Officially opened by the Premier
'' Western Mail'', 27 April 1912, p. 50, at

Trove Trove is an Australian online library database owned by the National Library of Australia in which it holds partnerships with source providers National and State Libraries Australia, an aggregator and service which includes full text document ...

Landmarks in Perth, Western Australia Trades halls in Australia State Register of Heritage Places in the City of Perth Beaufort Street, Perth

Building history

References

Further reading

External links