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Trades Hall is a building in the suburb of Carlton, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
It is located on the corner of Lygon St and Victoria St. Just north of the Melbourne CBD.
The original Trades Hall was opened in May 1859 after being built by workers as an organising place for the labour movement in Melbourne. The workers financed the construction of the building themselves. The hall underwent an upgrade from 1874 to 1925 at the hands of architectural firm Reed & Barnes and it remains one of the most historically important sites in Melbourne today.
The hall is located across the road from the 8 hour day monument which was erected to honour the Victorian workers who won the first 8 hour working day in the world in 1856. It is the birthplace of organisations like the Victorian Labour Party and Australian Council of Trade Unions.
Trades Hall is home to many of the Victorian trade unions, left-wing political parties and radical organisations. The various rooms of the hall can be hired out for functions, meetings or conferences and it is often used for theatrical productions and to display artwork. The hall has a bar which is patronised by trade union members and political activists and a bookshop which sells radical texts.
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