After a decade leading the ACTU, what is the legacy of Sally McManus and Michele O'Neil?

Australia's union movement announced a major leadership transition on Tuesday. Secretary Sally McManus and President Michele O'Neil of the Australian Council of Trade Unions are stepping down by year's end after a decade leading the organization—the first all-female ACTU leadership team. The Conversation Australia reports that their tenure transformed the movement: women became the majority of union members for the first time, and they secured major legislative wins including the right to disconnect from work, wage-theft criminalization, and same-job-same-pay protections. But the incoming leaders inherit a shrinking base—union membership has fallen to thirteen percent of the workforce—with mounting challenges around cost of living, inequality, and artificial intelligence reshaping work.

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