Wellington Trades Hall

The Wellington Trades and Labour Council had been looking to construct a purpose-built trades hall since 1901, but various factors including low union fees had slowed their efforts. In the early 1920s, Wellington’s unionised workers allowed for a portion of their wages to go towards the construction of a trades hall. The Vivian Street site was purchased in 1923 and the building completed in 1927.

The original plans were drawn in a neo-Classical style by prolific Wellington architect William Fielding (1875-1946). The original plans show a glass dome roof, which was covered in 1961, and a rear building for an assembly hall. The rear building, as well as the bridge connecting the two, was demolished in 1988. The façade of the building remains largely intact, including the second-floor window which is flanked by Doric columns and supported by a plinth that reads “LABOUR OMNIA VINCIT”, or “Labour Conquers All”.

The union movement had grown in numbers through the early 1900s, reaching its peak in 1921 with over 400 unions and 100,000 voluntary members. During this period, the Labour Party were looking to gain support from the unionised workforce, and Labour secretary Walter Nash saw the Trades Hall as being symbolic of the Labour movement’s success. The foundation stone, still visible in the building foyer, was laid by Labour Party leader Harry Holland. This connection was reaffirmed in 2018, following an earthquake strengthening process, when Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern reopened the building to the public.

Trades Hall included a printing press for publishing the New Zealand Worker, offered educational classes for working people, and was a significant site during the 22 week-long Watersiders Strike in 1951, and during the 1981 Springbok Tour protests. Some of the body armour worn by the anti-apartheid protesters was made within the hall.

However, the event that looms largest over the history of Trades Hall is the bombing of 1984. The event followed a heightened period of industrial tension, in part due to then Prime Minister Robert Muldoon sparring with the unions over a pay freeze. The perpetrator left a suitcase in the foyer, which was eventually picked up by the hall caretaker, Ernie Abbott, as he was locking up for the evening. The suitcase contained a homemade bomb which exploded, killing Abbot and injuring his dog, Patch. The case was re-opened in 2019 but remains unsolved. Although the motive remains unclear, the bombing.

Trades Hall remains in use by unions and is the oldest purpose-built trades hall in New Zealand. The building was given heritage status in 2021. The history of the building is commemorated with a public exhibition of films and significant union memorabilia from 1840 onwards. Each room is named in remembrance of Trade Unionists who worked in the hall, and the lobby displays paintings by Heyleni Pratley which commemorate unionists who died in their struggle for workers’ rights, Ernie Abbott, Fredrick Evans, and Christine Clarke.