Bella Union Bar - Carlton

As you ascend the historic blue stone stairs leading to Belle Union Bar, you are entering a place steeped in history. The building itself is listed on Australia's national heritage register and holds a significant place in the country's labor movement. It was in this very building that the world's first campaign for an 8-hour work day was formulated and successful, marking a milestone in Australian and global labor rights. Today, the building remains the hub of Victoria's Trade Unions. Visitors to Bella's Bar may have the opportunity to arrange a tour, granting them access to the building's special treasures, especially if they are active trade union members from outside the area. Friday evenings are an opportune time to meet with local trade union activists, as they often gather for social drinks from 5:00-7:00 pm. Additionally, the first Thursday evening of each month sees a Trades Hall Council Meeting around 6:00 pm, providing another chance to engage with the local labor community.

The minute you are walking up the historic blue stone stairs towards Belle Union Bar, you are stepping into history.The building itself is heritage listed on Australia's national register.It was here that the world's first 8 hour working day campaign was devised and won, along with many other major advancements in Australian and indeed world working conditions.The building is still the heart of Victoria's Trade Unions.If you go to Bella's Bar, you may even be able to organise a tour that will enable you to access the special treasures of this building, particularly if you are an active trade union member from interstate or overseas.The best time to meet local trade union activists in numbers is on Friday evenings from 5.00-7.00 pm when many gather fro social drinks, or prior to a Trades Hall Council Meeting on the first Thursday evening of each month around 6.00 pm!

Returning to Trades Hall for a fund-raising night after an interval of about a year, I noticed how run-down the whole building is looking. People I was with spontaneously made the same comment. It's a significant heritage building with a rich social history and it is used by a lot of people, so spending money on it would not an extravagance. The Bella Union Bar looks shabby, the toilets are antiquated, the electrical wiring looks old and unreliable. I won't be encouraging people to go to Trades Hall, and that is a pity.

The Bella Bar was a suitably grungy venue for an event during the Melbourne Writers Festival: a crime writers' prize giving with entertainment in the form of a band and a comic debate. I was drinking fruit juice and tried two types. Both were awful: though they were poured from big plastic bottles they tasted tinny and fake and too sweet.

Bella Bar is upstairs in the grand old Trades Hall building on the corner of Victoria Street and Lygon Street on the border of Melbourne city and the inner northern suburb of Carlton. It's a big, casual space with the bar across the back and a stage across the front. Over the years the bar has seen all kinds of people come and go and all kinds of gatherings and functions, including comedy, talks and launches.