The Australian trade union movement is set for a major leadership shakeup after the secretary and president of the Australian Council of Trade Unions announced their surprise departures. Sally McManus, ACTU secretary, and Michele O'Neil, ACTU president, revealed on Monday evening they would be stepping down after eight years together. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese described both as personal friends and “giants of the labour movement.”
Historic Leadership Team Steps Down
McManus and O'Neil were the first all-female leadership team in the ACTU's 99-year history. They played a major role in shaping the Albanese government's workplace agenda, successfully campaigning for the right to disconnect law, same job same pay protections, wage theft criminalisation, and ensuring minimum pay, insurance and safety standards for gig economy workers. Under their leadership, union membership has grown, and workers have gained over 47 new workplace rights.
McManus will depart in August, while O'Neil will help the new secretary settle in before leaving before the end of the year. In a farewell video posted to social media, the pair said it was time for renewal. “Union membership is growing and workers have over 47 new workplace rights,” McManus said. “But, of course, there are still big challenges with cost-of-living pressures, AI and billionaires who have too much wealth and power.”
Impact on Australian Politics
The ACTU recently began targeting Pauline Hanson, indicating that the union movement now considers One Nation—rather than the Coalition—as the biggest political threat to Labor and economic risk for working people. Prime Minister Albanese praised McManus and O'Neil's “tireless advocacy and strong leadership,” stating that their work had put working families “in a stronger financial position today than they would otherwise be.”
“It is fitting that Sally and Michele announce they’re stepping down from their respective positions at a time when there have been significant wage increases in critical and long-undervalued sectors, the gender pay gap is at a record low and union membership is growing for the first time in decades,” Albanese said.
Reactions and Future Plans
Speaking on ABC radio on Tuesday morning, O'Neil said the pair were “very trusting of each other” and that the union was in good shape. She ruled out seeking a career as a politician but would not reveal her next move. “I want to take a moment to breathe. I know more about what I won’t do than what I will do, but that’s OK,” she said. “I’m very happy to take some time to think about it.”
Greens leader Larissa Waters described McManus and O'Neil as a “powerful duo” and “strong voices for workers.” She said, “The union movement is strongest when it is bold, independent and willing to put workers’ rights ahead of vested interests. Sally and Michele have embodied that spirit in their leadership pushing the Albanese Labor government to implement a minimum 25% tax on gas exports and for action to address the housing crisis. We are entering what could be the most challenging period for Australian workers in recent history. It will be the task of the ACTU’s new leadership to hold governments to account, demand a good living for workers and refuse to allow political parties to tinker and capitulate to vested interests.”
