Union Organiser
A union organiser builds and maintains membership in a trade union or professional association by recruiting workers, addressing workplace grievances, and coordinating industrial action or negotiations.
What this job is
A union organiser builds and maintains membership in a trade union or professional association by recruiting workers, addressing workplace grievances, and coordinating industrial action or negotiations. Working across multiple worksites and industries, they advocate for members' interests in pay disputes, safety concerns, and conditions of work, and represent the union in discussions with employers and government bodies.
Are employers advertising this role?
Falling, down 36.5% over 5 years
Counted across a group of similar roles. These are three-month rolling averages of online job advertisements, not filled positions.
Source: Jobs and Skills Australia, Internet Vacancy Index.
Day-to-day
Recruit workers into union membership by conducting workplace visits, distributing membership materials, and explaining union benefits and subscription arrangements. Investigate and document workplace complaints regarding wages, conditions, safety breaches, or alleged unfair dismissal to support members' claims. Coordinate union campaigns and industrial action such as stop-work meetings, pickets, or bargaining strategies to achieve negotiated outcomes. Prepare member information sheets and correspondence on enterprise agreement terms, wage claims, and workplace rights under the Fair Work Act 2009. Attend workplace meetings and delegate assemblies to report on negotiations, union policy, and member feedback to leadership and bargaining teams. Lodge formal claims and disputes with the Fair Work Commission or other statutory bodies on behalf of members or the union. Organise and conduct union training sessions on workplace rights, entitlements, health and safety obligations, and dispute resolution processes. Maintain membership records, collect union subscriptions or dues, and reconcile financial data for union accounts.
Who does this now
About 2,500 people worked in this occupation across Australia at the 2021 Census.
What this role asks for
Certificate IV or Certificate III with at least two years of on-the-job training (ABS skill level 3)
Can employers fill these jobs
Employers hiring for this occupation were generally able to find suitable applicants in 2025. This measures how hard employers found it to fill jobs. It is not a count of jobs, and it does not say whether the occupation is growing.
Requirements
The standard entry pathway requires a Certificate IV or Certificate III with at least two years of on-the-job training (ABS skill level 3). Specific qualification requirements vary by employer and state. Some employers may accept equivalent experience. Check yourcareer.gov.au for available courses and dewr.gov.au/skills-reform/free-tafe for subsidised training options.
The honest hard part
You'll face real hostility from employers, and sometimes from workers too. Recruitment means constant rejection and pushback on worksites where management actively discourages unionisation. You also absorb members' stress about job security and unfair treatment, which can wear you down emotionally without always winning outcomes.
Where the jobs are
Practically speaking, jobs concentrate in construction, manufacturing, healthcare, and transport sectors. You'll need to travel between worksites regularly, so remote work isn't typical. Regional areas have fewer dedicated positions, though some unions cover large territories.
Pay
Published for ANZSCO unit group 2231, the wider group this job sits in, not for this job on its own.
This is the median for full-time employees who are not managers and are paid at the adult rate, before tax and salary sacrifice. It is a guide to what the work pays, not a wage rate.
Source: ABS Survey of Employee Earnings and Hours, May 2025, customised report.
Skills
- Active Listeningcore
- Award Interpretationcore
- Community Developmentcore
- Complaint Handlingcore
- Conflict Resolutioncore
- Empathy and Emotional Intelligencecore
- Group Facilitationcore
- Negotiationcore
- Participant or Client Advocacycore
- Regulatory and Legislative Awarenesscore
- Stakeholder Communicationcore
- Verbal Communicationcore
- Written Communicationcore
- Administer appointments
- Advertising techniques
- Conflict De-escalation
- Correspondence Drafting
- Cultural Awareness and Sensitivity
- Inclusive Practice
- Microsoft Office Suite Proficiency
- Policy Interpretation
- Record Management
- Report Writing
- Research and Analysis
- Time Management and Prioritisation
Which of these do you have?
Tick the ones you haveCommon questions
Sources
- ABS OSCA 2024, occupation definition and task statements
- ABS Survey of Employee Earnings and Hours, May 2025, customised report.
- ABS, 2021 Census of Population and Housing based on usual place of residence (Custom Report). OSCA Experimental Estimates.
Role data is drawn from official Australian Government sources, and each figure names where it comes from. Where a role is not in the ABS classification, the page shows no government figures for it. Data may not reflect every local variation.
Last updated: 30 October 2026
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