MEDIA RELEASE – UNION PAYMASTERS GIVE LABOR $5.7m IN DONATIONS

Senator the Hon Michaelia Cash

Shadow Attorney-General

Shadow Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations

Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Senate

Senator for Western Australia

MEDIA RELEASE

1 FEBRUARY 2024

UNION PAYMASTERS GIVE LABOR $5.7m IN DONATIONS

The union movement continues to deliver for the Albanese Labor Government with the Australian Electoral Commission’s annual returns showing unions gave them over $5.7 million last financial year.

The annual returns revealed union donors included the SDA (almost $1.3 million), UWU (almost $950,000), AWU ($676,000) and CFMEU ($458,000)

On top of the $5.7 million in donations to Labor, the unions spent an additional $1.37 million on political campaigning.

“What the returns show is that the unions continue to pay so they can have their demands met by the Albanese Government,’’ Senator Cash said.

“The biggest pay off has come in the form of a series of radical industrial relations law changes which advantage the unions,’’ Senator Cash said.

“It started with the abolition of the Australian Building and Construction Commission as one of their first acts in Government and quickly moved on to multi-employer bargaining which was rammed through the Parliament at the end of 2022,’’ Senator Cash said.

“Late last year we saw more union demands fulfilled as further changes including an attack on labour-hire were pushed through on the final sitting day of the year,’’ she said.

“And now we are due to see more radical changes implemented when the Parliament returns next week,’’ Senator Cash said.

“Flexible working arrangements will be under attack with businesses warning it will be very difficult to hire casuals and the price of ride share and food delivery will rise,’’ she said.

“The business community has made it clear that the changes Labor is pursuing will add to the cost of doing business and those costs will no doubt be passed onto consumers,’’ she said.

“This Government will do anything to deliver for their union paymasters and we can only expect more and more demands as the money continues to flow,’’ Senator Cash said.

ENDS