Union shake up as top bosses for the ACTU both announce they are leaving

Published: 15:39, 27 July 2026 | Updated: 15:40, 27 July 2026 The high-profile heads of the ACTU have both revealed they will step down before the year is out to 'make way for a new generation'. ACTU secretary Sally McManus and president Michele O'Neil made a joint announcement about their resignations on Monday night. McManus, elected in 2017, will bow out at the end of August, while O'Neil, elected in 2018, will remain on for a few months to assist in the transition to new leadership. The pair is the longest serving leadership in the umbrella organisation representing dozens of trade unions in nearly six decades. The pair had both decided they would step down with enough time for union factions to decide on new leadership and get them in place before the 2027 ACTU Congress. McManus said she would be leaving a few months earlier than O'Neil as she suffered sudden hearing loss in her left ear last year and it was affecting her ability to work. She is expected to undergo receive a cochlear ear implant later this year. Among the pairs achievements were securing minimum pay for gig workers, strengthening gender pay laws, and fending off the Morrison government's 2020 industrial relations bill. ACTU President Michele O'Neil (left) and Secretary Sally McManus (right) are stepping down Transport Workers' Union national secretary Michael Kaine said McManus and O'Neil were both huge figures in the movement and left an 'incredible legacy'. McManus said she intends to have a break and do some bird watching before taking on another role.  She identified the threat of artificial intelligence, the rise of the far-right, the mixing of billionaires with politicians, and the drop in living standards as the emerging fights the unions should take on.  Both said they have no interest in going into politics.