Union Banner, C.1913-1919

Celebrating the 8 hour day

Unity is Strength

In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, trade union banners were unfurled with pride in the annual Eight Hour Day March which advocated ‘Eight Hours Labour, Eight Hours Recreation and Eight Hours Rest’. These marches were one of the most prominent annual celebrations staged in Australia by any group. In Sydney alone, in the early twentieth century, up to 5000 unionists in sixty or seventy unions would take part in such parades.

The banner is decorated with Australian flowers and images representative of the work of the Union’s members. It is painted canvas with a crimson silk border and gold fringe on the bottom, and ‘8 Hours’ has been over-painted with ‘6 Hours’ indicating its later use following the achievement of the Eight-Hour Day for the Union’s members. The banner was painted by the Sydney firm, Althouse & Geiger, master painters and decorators, which was founded in 1875 and remains in operation today.
Display item Union Banner, C.1913-1919

 

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