The Tasmanian Trades & Labor Council

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 state level...

, also known as Unions Tasmania, is a representative body of trade union

Trade union

A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...

 organisations in the State of Tasmania

Tasmania

Tasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...

, Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

. It is the peak union body in Tasmania, made up of affiliated unions who represent more than 40,000 workers. It is the Tasmanian Branch of the Australian Council of Trade Unions

Australian Council of Trade Unions

The Australian Council of Trade Unions is the largest peak body representing workers in Australia. It is a national trade union centre of 46 affiliated unions.-History:The ACTU was formed in 1927 as the "Australian Council of Trade Unions"...

 (the ACTU).

As of 2005, the current Trades Hall Secretary is Simon Cocker. Notable past Trades Hall

Trades Hall

A Trades Hall is an English term for a building where trade unions meet together, or work from cooperatively, as a local representative organisation, known as a Labor Council or Trades Hall Council...

 Secretaries include:

• Jim Bacon
  Jim Bacon
  James Alexander Bacon, AC was Premier of Tasmania from 1998 to 2004.-Early life:Bacon was born in Melbourne; his father Frank, a doctor, died when Jim was twelve, leaving him to be raised by his mother Joan. He was educated at Scotch College and later at Monash University, but he did not graduate....
  
   was Secretary from 1989, before entering the Tasmanian House of Assembly
  Tasmanian House of Assembly
  The House of Assembly, or Lower House, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of Tasmania in Australia. The other is the Legislative Council or Upper House...
  
   in 1996 and becoming Premier
  Premier
  Premier is a title for the head of government in some countries and states.-Examples by country:In many nations, "premier" is used interchangeably with "prime minister"...
  
   of Tasmania for the period 1998 to 2004.
• Paul Lennon
  Paul Lennon
  Paul Anthony Lennon is an Australian Labor Party politician. He was Premier of Tasmania from 21 March 2004 until his resignation on 26 May 2008. He was member of the Tasmanian House of Assembly for the seat of Franklin from 1990 until officially resigning on 27 May 2008...
  
   was Secretary from 1984 before elected to the Tasmanian House of Assembly
  Tasmanian House of Assembly
  The House of Assembly, or Lower House, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of Tasmania in Australia. The other is the Legislative Council or Upper House...
  
   in 1990, and becoming Premier
  Premier
  Premier is a title for the head of government in some countries and states.-Examples by country:In many nations, "premier" is used interchangeably with "prime minister"...
  
   in 2004.
• Lynne Fitzgerald was the first woman elected Secretary of an Australian State Trades and Labor Council in 1995.
• John Henry O'Neil who was Secretary 1927 to 1958, then 1962 to 1967, and also secretary of the Eight Hours Day Committee in 1921 to 1967. .

History

The Trades & Labor Council of Hobart was started in 1883. In 1917 it became known as the Hobart Trades Hall Council. It again changed its name in 1968 to the Tasmanian Trades & Labor Council.