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 state level. They may also be based on a particular industry rather than geographical area, as for example, in the Maritime Council of Australia which co-ordinated the waterfront and maritime unions involved in the 1890 Australian Maritime Dispute. Affiliates of labour councils are

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 ...

branches or locals, and occasionally other

labour movement The labour movement or labor movement consists of two main wings: the trade union movement (British English) or labor union movement (American English) on the one hand, and the political labour movement on the other. * The trade union movement ...

organisations. Citywide or provincial councils may have district or regional labour council affiliates as well as trade unions. Some labour councils restrict their membership to organisations which are affiliated with a particular national

trade union federation A national trade union center (or national center or central) is a federation or confederation of trade unions in a country. Nearly every country in the world has a national trade union center, and many have more than one. In some regions, such ...

, such as many state-level labour councils in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

, which are chartered from the AFL–CIO national confederation. Finances are usually obtained through an affiliation fee, often based on a per capita tax on the membership of affiliates. In Australia, Trades and Labour Councils often have their own hall and offices known as a Trades Hall, with the term Trades Hall often used as a colloquial expression for the Labour Council or Trades Hall Council.

Note on usage

Labour councils are a widespread phenomenon, but are given different names in different English-speaking areas. Labour Council is most common in Canada and Australia, Labor Council is used in the (USA) and Trades Council, Trades Union Council or Trades and Labour Council in the United Kingdom (and until recently was widespread in Australia) and some other countries. Another term sometimes used is Industrial Council, as in for example, the Barrier Industrial Council of

Broken Hill Broken Hill is an inland mining city in the far west of outback New South Wales, Australia. It is near the border with South Australia on the crossing of the Barrier Highway (A32) and the Silver City Highway (B79), in the Barrier Range. It ...

in Australia. National associations of trade unions, such as British Trade Union Congress may also be considered a labour council, though the term often implies a primarily local organisation.

History

Labour Councils were formed to meet a need to co-ordinate trade union activity in a geographical region. The earliest examples of this form of organisation can be found in the medieval craft

guild A guild ( ) is an association of artisans and merchants who oversee the practice of their craft/trade in a particular area. The earliest types of guild formed as organizations of tradesmen belonging to a professional association. They sometim ...

s and Craft halls that developed in European cities. An example of this is the historic Glasgow Trades Hall wherein the 14 Incorporated Trades of Hammermen, Tailors, Cordiners, Maltmen, Weavers, Bakers, Skinners, Wrights, Coopers, Fleshers, Masons, Gardeners, Barbers, Bonnetmakers & Dyers yearly elected members of the Trades House, headed by the Deacon Convener of the Trades:

The Trades House of Glasgow was created at the time of reform of Glasgow's local government in 1605. At that time the electorate was basically divided into two groups, the Merchants and the Craftsmen. The Craft Incorporations or Guilds comprised the trades Rank of Burgesses under the leadership of the deacon convener, who was given a council. This included the Craft leaders and is the body we now recognise as the Trades House.

The trade union activity of the late nineteenth century in particular spurred the establishment of Labour Councils and Trades Councils acrossing North America, Australia and Britain. Some notable events in the history of labour councils include: * 1791–1794 – Glasgow Trades Hall built to serve as a public hall and meeting place for the city's Trades House and 14 Incorporated Crafts * 1834 – attempt to establish the Grand National Consolidated Trades Union in Britain * 1848 – first Liverpool Trades Council founded * 1856 – Melbourne Trades Hall Committee formed. Now known as Victorian Trades Hall Council * 1858 –

Sheffield Trades Council The Sheffield Trades and Labour Council, usually known as the Sheffield Trades Council, is a labour organisation uniting trade unionists in Sheffield. Precursors The earliest recorded attempt to found an alliance of trade unions in the city is th ...

and Glasgow Trades Council founded * 1859 – Melbourne Trades Hall opened in May.

Edinburgh Trades Council {{Use British English, date=February 2017 The Edinburgh Trade Union Council brings together trade union branches in Edinburgh in Scotland. The first permanent trades council in Edinburgh appears to have been formed in 1853, one of the first in the ...

and Bolton Trades Council founded * 1860 – London Trades Council and

Leeds Trades Council Leeds Trades Council is an organisation bringing together trade unionists in Leeds, in northern England. History The council was founded in 1860, and remained small during its first decade, largely consisting of a few local unions. In 1871, the N ...

founded * 1861 – Dundee Trades Union Council founded * 1864 – Manchester and Salford Trades Council formed. * 1868 – First Trades Union Congress called by Manchester and Salford Trades Council in

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The ...

, with invitations being sent to "trades councils and other similar federations of trade societies" only. * 1871 – Trades & Labor Council of Sydney formed. * 1871 - Toronto Trades and Labour Assembly (now the Toronto and York Labour Council) formed * 1893 – San Francisco Labor Council chartered. * 1895 – Trades Union Congress (Britain) restricted to unions, with trades councils excluded altogether to avoid dual representation. * 1926 – In Britain, Trades Councils play a prominent role in organising the

General Strike A general strike refers to a strike action in which participants cease all economic activity, such as working, to strengthen the bargaining position of a trade union or achieve a common social or political goal. They are organised by large coa ...

References

External links

Glasgow Trades Hall history

Greater London Association of Trade Union Councils
Trades Union Councils
by the British Trade Union Congress
Catalogue of the Coventry Trades Council archives
held at the

Modern Records Centre, University of Warwick The Modern Records Centre (MRC) is the specialist archive service of the University of Warwick in Coventry, England, located adjacent to the Central Campus Library. It was established in October 1973 and holds the world's largest archive collecti ...

Catalogue of the trades council publications collection
held at the Modern Records Centre, University of Warwick {{Organized labor, sp=uk Labor relations

Note on usage

History

See also

References

External links