Labour Day and Industrial Relations in Australia Pre-1904

Labour Day in Australia has its origins in the eight-hour day movement, which advocated eight hours for work, eight hours for recreation, and eight hours for rest.

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Score for union song, 'We shall not be moved'

🡕 Song available via the Smithsonian Institute

In 1855, stonemasons in Sydney protested and won an eight-hour day, but suffered a reduction in wages as a result. On 21 April 1856, stonemasons working on site at Melbourne University, Victoria downed their tools and marched to Melbourne’s Parliament House, and won the right to an eight-hour day with no loss of pay for workers employed on public works.

In general, the working week at the time was six days, resulting in a standard 48-hour week.

Labour Day is celebrated on different days across Australia, and commemorates the achievement of workers’ rights in the individual states and territories.

Between 1830 and 1850, workers’ societies began to form to protect workers’ interests. From 1850 unions began to form and by 1890 Australia’s trade unions had become a significant force.

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Photograph: Shearer's Strike Camp 1891, from the Bob Hawke Collection, unprocessed

Did you know?

The bush ballad ‘Waltzing Matilda’ was based on stories from sheep stations in the Barcaldine area at the time of the shearer’s strikes.

During 1890, the Shearer’s Union campaigned to protect working conditions and shearer’s strikes were widespread. One of the first May Day marches in the world took place during shearer’s strikes on May 1st 1891 in Barcaldine, Queensland. This event is recognized as the birth of the Australian Labor Party.

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Sources

➥ For information on the library's collection, visit the Bob Hawke Guide or explore the Bob Hawke Collection.

Industrial Relations Pre-1904