Australian Young Labor

Youth wing of the Australian Labor Party From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Australian Young Labor (AYL), also known as the Young Labor Movement or simply Young Labor, is the youth wing of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) representing all party members aged between 14 and 26.[1][2] The organisation operates as a federation with independently functioning branches in all Australian states and territories which serve under the relevant state or territory branch of the federal Labor Party, often coming together during national conferences and federal elections. Young Labor is the oldest continuously operating youth wing of any political party in Australian history, being first founded in 1920.

PresidentChris Hancock
National SecretaryLouis Gordon
Founded
  • Earliest state branch:
    1920; 106 years ago (1920)
  • National branch:
    1971; 55 years ago (1971)
HeadquartersCanberra, Australian Capital Territory
Quick facts President, National Secretary ...
Australian Young Labor
PresidentChris Hancock
National SecretaryLouis Gordon
Founded
  • Earliest state branch:
    1920; 106 years ago (1920)
  • National branch:
    1971; 55 years ago (1971)
HeadquartersCanberra, Australian Capital Territory
IdeologySocial democracy
Democratic socialism
PositionCentre-left to left-wing
Colours  Red
Mother partyAustralian Labor Party
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Young Labor is very closely connected and integrated with its mother party, with many members of the organisation leading successful political careers after the fact. Former presidents of Young Labor have included former New South Wales Premier Bob Carr, current federal Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations Tony Burke, former Special Minister of State, Senator John Faulkner, former member for Maribyrnong and former federal Labor leader Bill Shorten, as well as various of state and federal ministers and MPs.

Formation

The first officially sanctioned Young Labor group was formed in Western Australia in March 1920 as the Young Labor League.[3] The Labor Guild of Youth was established in Victoria in 1926,[4] followed by the Labor Guild of New South Wales the following year.[5] The first provisional meeting of the ALP's National Youth Council was held in 1948 as an effort to revitalise Young Labor branches that had become dormant during World War II. By the 1960s most states had created young labor organisations, usually called the Young Labor Association (YLA). In the early 1970s there was a move to set up a permanent national organisation. In 1971 leaders of several state YLAs met in Adelaide to constitute a national body and the first conference was held in Adelaide in early 1972 with future federal parliamentarian Bob McMullan elected as the first national president.[6] Australian Young Labor (AYL) was included in the constitution of the ALP in 1973.[7]

Ideology

Australian Young Labor promotes a mix of social democracy and democratic socialism with a focus on issues relevant to younger Australians. AYL advocates for social justice, aiming to reduce inequality and improve access to essential services like healthcare and education. It supports progressive policies on LGBTQIA+ rights, gender equality, Indigenous reconciliation, and multiculturalism. Environmental sustainability is a key concern, with AYL pushing for strong climate action and a transition to renewable energy. The organization also champions economic justice, advocating for fair wages, job creation, and workers’ rights, as well as the protection and expansion of public services, particularly in education and healthcare. AYL seeks to increase the political participation of young people and supports progressive foreign policy grounded in human rights and global cooperation. Although it aligns with ALP values, AYL often takes more progressive stances, reflecting the priorities of its younger membership.[citation needed]

National conference

Biennially Australian Young Labor holds a conference in a capital city, normally Canberra. The conference is usually held at a university campus and typically features guest speakers from the ALP. At the conference several positions are elected by delegates chosen from state branches. Fifteen executive positions are also elected. The Young Labor National President is a non-voting ex-officio representative on the Australian Labor Party National Executive.

Notable conference action

  • The inaugural Australian Young Labor Conference, held in Adelaide in 1972, drew controversy following the alleged surveillance of conference delegates by Australian Federal Police officers. The conference had suspended on the second day to vote on an urgency motion condemning the presence of police. The motion passed, and the conference adjourned to allow members to form a vocal and public protest against two federal police officers who had been stationed outside the conference venue.[8] The protest was ultimately peaceful and no arrests were made.
  • Less than three months following the controversial dismissal of the Whitlam government by Governor-General Sir John Kerr, the Australian Young Labor conference passed a motion for Kerr to be disallowed entry back into Australia following completion of an overseas trip. The motion was submitted by the South Australian delegation, and called on Australian trade unions to use the power of their membership base to block Kerr's return, stating "if Sir John thought he had a democratic right to dismiss Mr Gough Whitlam as Prime Minister then trade unions also have the right to withdraw their labour."[10]
  • Following some division between left and right factions of the AYL in 2023 about the adoption of the IHRA definition of antisemitism,[11] New South Wales Young Labor adopted unanimously a motion in 2025 condemning antisemitism and promoting Jewish participation[12] in the ALP by establishing a working group to advise the executive on matters relating to anti-Semitism, inclusion and representation.[13]

National Executive

National Presidents

More information Name, State ...
Name State Term start Term end Other offices held Ref
Bob McMullan Western Australia 1972 1973 ALP National Secretary (1981–1988)
Senator for the Australian Capital Territory (1988–1996)
Member of the Australian House of Representatives for Canberra (1996–1998) and Fraser (1998–2010)
Minister in the Keating government (1993–1996)		 [14]
Pam Allan New South Wales 1975 1976 Member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly for Wentworthville (1988–1991, 1999–2007) and Blacktown (1991–1999)
Minister in the Carr government (1995–1999)		 [15]
Arch Bevis Queensland 1978 1979 Member of the Australian House of Representatives for Brisbane (1990–2010) [16]
Terry Connolly South Australia 1979 1980 Member of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly (1990–1996)
Minister in the Follett government (1991–1995)
Judge of the Australian Capital Territory Supreme Court (2003–2007)		 [17]
Glenn Bachelor New South Wales 1980 1981 [18]
Paul Pearce New South Wales 1981 1982 Australian Young Labor Secretary (1980–1981)
Mayor of Waverley (1997–2004)
Member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly for Coogee (2003–2011)		 [19]
Steve Bartos Australian Capital Territory 1983 1984 ACT Young Labor President (1981–1982) [20]
Joanne Scard New South Wales 1986 1987 [21]
Ian Rogers New South Wales 1987 1988 [22][23]
Janelle Howe Queensland 1988 1989 [24]
Sue Thompson Australian Capital Territory 1990 1991 [25][26]
Tony Burke New South Wales 1993 1994 Member of the New South Wales Legislative Council (2003–2004)
Member of the Australian House of Representatives for Watson (2004– )
Minister in the Rudd (2007–2010, 2013), Gillard (2010–2013) and Albanese (2022– ) governments.		 [27][28]
Tim Holding Victoria 1994 1995 Member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly for Springvale (1999–2002) and Lyndhurst (2002–2013)
Minister in the Bracks and Brumby governments (2006–2010)		 [29][30]
Cherie Burton New South Wales 1995 1996 Member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly for Kogarah (1999–2015)
Minister in the Iemma government (2005–2007)		 [31]
Ben Hubbard Victoria 1996 1997 Chief of Staff to the Prime Minister (2011–2013) [32][33]
Milton Dick Queensland 1997 1998 Queensland Labor State Secretary (2004–2008)
Brisbane City Councillor (2008–2016)
Member of the Australian House of Representatives for Oxley (2016– )
Speaker of the Australian House of Representatives (2022– )		 [34][35]
Daniel Cook New South Wales 1998 1999 Councillor for the City of Gosford (1999–2004) [36]
Jacki O'Mara Queensland 1999 2000 [37][38]
Amanda Rishworth South Australia 2000 2001 Member of the Australian House of Representatives for Kingston (2007– )
Minister in the Albanese government (2022– )		 [16]
2001 2002
2002 2003
Alex Dighton South Australia 2003 2004 Member of the South Australian House of Assembly for Black (2024– ) [39][40]
2004 2005
2005 2006
2006 2007
Sam Crosby New South Wales 2007 2008 [41][42]
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National Secretaries

More information Name, State ...
Name State Term start Term end Other offices held Ref
Gillian Currie Australian Capital Territory 1979 1980 [43]
Paul Pearce New South Wales 1980 1981 Australian Young Labor President (1981–1982)
Mayor of Waverley (1997–2004)
Member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly for Coogee (2003–2011)		 [19]
Shane Maddick Victoria 1981 1982 [19]
Mark Cuomo Western Australia 1983 1984 [44]
Mark Kenny South Australia 1985 1986 [45][46]
Grant Fitsner South Australia 1986 1987 [21]
Sue Thompson Australian Capital Territory 1992 1993 [47]
Liam McKay Queensland 1993 1994 [27]
Eddie Husic New South Wales 1994 1995 Member of the Australian House of Representatives for Chifley (2010–present)
Minister in the Albanese government (2022–2025)		 [48][29]
1995 1996
Justin Jarvis South Australia 1996 1997 [33][49]
Aaron Gadiel New South Wales 1997 1998 [34]
Paul Bini Tasmania 1998 1999 [36]
Jamie Driscoll Australian Capital Territory 1999 2000 [37]
2000 2001
2001 2002
2002 2003
Lambros Tapinos Victoria 2003 2004 Councillor for the City of Merri-bek (2008–2024) [50][39]
2004 2005
2005 2006
Chris Hancock Queensland 2025 Incumbent [51]
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Other notable former officeholders

Criticism and controversy

On 8 December 2004, The Sydney Morning Herald published allegations that factional leaders within the Labor Party in New South Wales were "petty, faction obsessed and vindictive". The article, authored by Aubrey Belford, then a member of the ALP and former editor of the Sydney University student paper, Honi Soit, laments a Young Labor dominated by factional infighting, "Put simply, the party culture encourages young people to devote their energy to pursuing objectives that ultimately have no impact on the real world, and to pursue them through ritual political violence."[71]

On 23 January 2012, president of Queensland Young Labor, Chaiy Donati came under significant criticism following links to the United States Republican Party. Online news source Crikey reported that he helped anti-war and pro drug legalisation Republican candidate Ron Paul in his fight for the primaries in New Hampshire. Ron Paul came second to Mitt Romney on the Republican Party ballot, and, as a write-in candidate, second to Barack Obama on the Democratic Party ballot in New Hampshire.[72] On his return to Queensland, numerous factional rivalries emerged between members. Despite this, Chaiy Donati remained the right's factional leader and in 2013 secured Queensland's Kerrie Kahlon the Australian Young Labor presidency. Chaiy Donati returned to the United States in April 2016, this time working on the Democratic primaries for Bernie Sanders in a close run against Hillary Clinton.[72]

In August 2018, Federal Labor staffer and ACT Young Labor member Nick Douros was suspended from his role in the party and quit as a staffer to Senator David Smith.[73][74][75] The party's internal disputes tribunal upheld an allegation he and ACT Young Labor conduct contact officer Francis Claessens, and Niall Cummins — had contravened the party's code of conduct for bullying a fellow member, calling her a "rat" and saying they would make her life hell. All three men were ordered to attend mediation and undergo respectful behaviour training. The victim alleged she was targeted as a result of an internal party stoush during the pre-selection process for seats.[76] In 2019, Nick Douros was elected national secretary of AYL.[77]

References

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