Bill Shorten

The Honourable Bill Shorten MP
Member of the Australian Parliament for Maribyrnong
Incumbent
Assumed office 3 December 2007
Preceded by	Robert Sercombe
Minister for Financial Services and Superannuation
Incumbent
Assumed office 14 September 2010
Prime Minister	Julia Gillard
Preceded by	Chris Bowen
Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations
Incumbent
Assumed office 14 December 2011
Preceded by	Chris Evans
Personal details
Born	12 May 1967 (1967-05-12) Melbourne
Nationality	Australian
Political party	Australian Labor Party
Spouse(s)	Chloe Shorten
Residence	Moonee Ponds, Victoria
Alma mater	Monash University
Profession	Trade unionist
Website	www.billshorten.com.au

William Richard "Bill" Shorten (born 12 May 1967) is an Australian politician, the Member for Maribyrnong in the Australian Parliament, Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations, and Minister for Financial Services and Superannuation. He was Assistant Treasurer in the first Gillard Ministry and the Parliamentary Secretary for Disability and Children's Services in the Rudd/Gillard Government 2007–2010. He is a former Victorian State President of the Australian Labor Party, a long-time member of the right-wing Labor Unity faction, and a former Secretary of the Australian Workers' Union (AWU).

Early career

Bill Shorten was born in Melbourne, where his father was a waterside worker and union official. His mother was a lawyer and university academic. He was educated at Xavier College (a Roman Catholic school) and Monash University, where he graduated in arts and law. During his time at Monash, Shorten was a founding member of Young Labor Network, a right wing Labor youth caucus. He also holds an MBA from the Melbourne Business School, an unusual qualification for a trade union official.

Shorten began working in the labour movement while still a student, working part-time for federal Labor Minister Gareth Evans and later Neil Pope, a minister in the Labor state government of John Cain. After graduating he worked for 18 months as a lawyer for the firm of Maurice Blackburn Cashman, a firm which generates a large portion of its income representing trade unions.

Union leader

In 1994, Shorten began his union career as a trainee organiser under the ACTU's Organising Works program at the AWU, before being elected Victorian State Secretary in 1998. Before taking this post, Shorten had decided to enter Victorian state politics, and was elected unopposed as the Labor candidate for the state seat of Melton for the 1999 state election, but gave this up to pursue his career with the union. Shorten was responsible for reforming the union's structure and halting the long-term decline in its membership.

Shorten was elected as the AWU's National Secretary in 2001, and was re-elected in 2005. He resigned as Victorian State Secretary of the AWU in August 2006. As a trade union official with a tertiary education, he reflects the changing composition of the AWU's membership, and of the trade union movement.

Shorten was an active member of the Labor Party; he was a member of the party's National Executive until 2011, as well as the Administrative Committee of the Victorian Branch. He is a former director of the Superannuation Trust of Australia (now Australian Super), and the Victorian Funds Management Corporation. From December 2005 until May 2008 he was the Victorian State President of the Labor Party. He was also a member of the Australian Council of Trade Unions Executive. Until early 2006, he was a board member of GetUp.org.au

During his time as AWU National Secretary, Shorten was the interim chief executive of the Australian Netball Players Association (ANPA), following an alliance between the AWU and ANPA in 2005. Shorten also served on the advisory board of the Australian Cricketers' Association.

Shorten resigned as AWU National Secretary and his other board positions on 26 November 2007 in order to take his seat in federal parliament.

Politics

During 2005 there was increasing speculation that Shorten intended entering federal politics at the next election. In February 2006 he announced that he would seek endorsement for the safe Labor seat of Maribyrnong, where the sitting Labor member, Bob Sercombe, was supported by the Left faction. The AWU is a pillar of the right-wing Labor Unity faction of the party, which has a majority in the Victorian Branch of the party.

The political correspondent of The Age, Misha Schubert, wrote, "The ascendancy of the articulate, clever and impressively connected challenger, routinely touted as a future prime minister, seems all but assured." She pointed out that, as well as his base in the right-wing unions, Shorten would be supported by some unions normally associated with the left, such as the Communications, Electrical and Plumbing Union.

Justifying his challenge to a sitting member and serving shadow minister, Shorten said: "We haven't won a federal election since 1993. When your footy team loses four consecutive grand finals, you renew the team." On 28 February Sercombe withdrew his candidacy, a few days before the local vote of ALP members in which Shorten was expected to poll very strongly. As a result Shorten was pre-selected unopposed.

During the Beaconsfield mine collapse, Shorten, in his role as National Secretary of the AWU, the union representing the miners, played a prominent role as negotiator and commentator on developments in the immediate aftermath and the ensuing rescue operations. The mine rescue operations drew mass national media coverage, and raised Shorten's political profile ahead of the 2007 election.

At the election on 24 November 2007, Bill Shorten was elected to the House of Representatives as the Labor Member for Maribyrnong. It was speculated that with Shorten's high public profile and general popularity within the Labor Party, he might be given a front-bench portfolio; however, when asked about the possibility, Prime Minister-elect Kevin Rudd said that he believed parliamentary experience was essential when designating front-bench portfolios. On 29 November Rudd announced that Shorten would become the Parliamentary Secretary for Disabilities and Children's Services.

On 3 December 2007 Bill Shorten was sworn in as the Parliamentary Secretary for Disabilities and Children's Services. On 25 June 2010, Shorten was one of the main factional leaders involved in the replacement of Kevin Rudd as leader of the Labor Party and Prime Minister for Julia Gillard. Following the election there was speculation that Shorten might seek to topple Prime Minister Gillard from her position as ALP leader; former Labor party leaders Bob Hawke and Kim Beazley had previously endorsed Shorten as a potential Labor leader.

On 12 December 2011 Bill Shorten was promoted to Cabinet with the Workplace Relations Portfolio.

Personal

Bill Shorten is married to Chloe Bryce, the daughter of the Governor-General of Australia Quentin Bryce. Shorten is one of a number of current Ministers that has a young family - his daughter Clementine, and Rupert and Georgette Parkin (the son and daughter of Chloe Bryce).

Bill Shorten was previously married to Debbie Beale, daughter of Liberal Party politician Julian Beale and granddaughter of politician and Ambassador to the United States Sir Howard Beale.

External links

• Bill Shorten – Labor for Maribyrnong
• AWU: Bill Shorten
• Parliament of Australia – House of Representatives – The Hon Bill Shorten MP
• Parliamentary Secretary for Disabilities and Children's Services
• Search or browse Hansard for Bill Shorten at OpenAustralia.org

Political offices
Preceded by Chris Evans	Minister for Workplace Relations 2011 – present	Incumbent
Preceded by Chris Bowen	Minister for Financial Services and Superannuation 2010 – present	Incumbent
Parliament of Australia
Preceded by Bob Sercombe	Member for Maribyrnong 2010 – present	Incumbent
Other offices
Preceded by Terry Muscat	National Secretary of The Australian Workers' Union 2001–2007	Succeeded by Paul Howes