The farewell included a video statement and media interviews confirming the decision and outlining future plans.

Sally McManus and Michele O’Neil resign from ACTU after eight years in top roles, marking the first all-female leadership team in the union’s 99-year history.

Their leadership helped shape the Labor government’s workplace agenda and they are hailed as giants of the labour movement for their work.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese praised them as giants of the labour movement and highlighted wage gains, reduced gender pay gap, and rising union membership under their tenure.

McManus stressed the need to turn around under-attack workers’ rights, fix workplace laws, and noted that unions are growing with workers pushing for pay rises and fairness.

McManus will depart next month, while O’Neil will stay on briefly to assist the transition before leaving by year’s end.

O’Neil described the departure as timely and said new leadership will benefit workers and the union movement.

During their tenure, they campaigned for the right to disconnect, same job, same pay protections, wage theft criminalisation, and established minimum standards for gig workers’ pay, insurance, and safety.

In farewell remarks, McManus cited challenges such as cost-of-living pressures, AI’s impact on work, and the growing concentration of wealth among billionaires.

Both leaders deny plans for federal political careers, reflecting on their eight-year tenure as a privilege and responsibility for advancing workers’ rights.

Their achievements include 47 new union and workers’ rights reforms under the Albanese government since 2022 and a notable rise in union membership.

The ACTU has signalled a strategic shift, focusing on One Nation as a major political threat to Labor and workers’ interests.