Ballarat Trades Hall was part of the Intercolonial Trades Hall Congresses that were created for the purposes of collective organising within labour organisations. There were eight Congresses within Australia that regularly discussed: - legislation of trade unions - organisation of labour - abolition of ‘Chinese and coolie immigration’ - Compulsory Court of Arbitration - Employers Liability Act - legalisation of the 8 hours system - land nationalisation - manhood suffrage - direct representation of labour in Parliament - appointment of working men on technical and other boards - free compulsory and secular education by the state and regulation of apprentices. Some of the resolutions passed related to: - the Commonwealth Draft Bill - assisted immigration - payment to Members of Parliament - single tax - paid union organisers, - minimum wage - industrial federation. The minutes and the Congress show BTLC's ongoing engagement with industrial , social and education matters on a wide scale.Paperbtlc, ballarat trades and labour council, unions, ballarat trades hall, union organisers, wages, industrial federation, taxation, parliament, members of parliament, immigration, commonwealth draft bill, education, land nationalisation, manhood suffrage, employers liability act, court of arbitration, chinese

Ballarat Trades Hall was part of the Intercolonial Trades Hall Congresses created for the purposes of collective organising within labour organisations. There were eight Congresses held within Australia: - 1879 Sydney - 1884 Melbourne - 1885 Sydney - 1886 Adelaide - 1888 Brisbane - 1889 Hobart - 1891 Ballarat (after the Maritime Strike in 1890) The political organisation of the labour movement and of restructuring trade union organisation under the Australasian Federation of Labour were significant agenda items. - 1898 Adelaide The following items were regularly discussed: - legislation of trade unions- organisation of labour - abolition of ‘Chinese and coolie immigration’ - Compulsory Court of Arbitration - Employers Liability Act - legalisation of the 8 hours system - land nationalisation - manhood suffrage - direct representation of labour in Parliament - appointment of working men on technical and other boards - free compulsory and secular education by the state and regulation of apprentices. Some of the resolutions passed were about: - Commonwealth Draft Bill - assisted immigration - payment to Members of Parliament - single tax, paid union organisers - minimum wage and industrial federation. See also http://archives.anu.edu.au/files/document-collection/intercolonial-trade-union-congresses-web-final.pdfTopics of discussion show the union/labour movement's ongoing activism and engagement on parliamentary and union matters, organising and employment on a national scale.1 volumeunions, organising, ballarat trades hall, ballarat trades and labour council, legislation, immigration, court of arbitration, employers liability act, land nationalisation, manhood suffrage, parliament, education, taxation, union organisers, wages, commonwealth draft bill