Australian Young Labor

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Australian Young Labor
PresidentJason Byrne
Founded1926; 95 years ago (1926)[1]
HeadquartersCanberra, Australian Capital Territory
IdeologySocial democracy
Mother partyAustralian Labor
Websiteyounglabor.org.au

Australian Young Labor is the youth wing of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) representing all ALP members aged 15 to 26.[2][3] Former presidents of AYL have included former NSW Premier Bob Carr, Federal Minister for Agriculture Tony Burke, Special Minister of State Senator John Faulkner, former Australian Workers Union National Secretary and current Member for Maribyrnong and former Federal Labor Leader Bill Shorten as well as dozens of State Ministers and MPs.

Formation[]

The Labor Guild of Youth was established in Victoria in 1926. The first provisional meeting of the ALP's Youth Council was held in 1948. Australian Young Labor (AYL) was included in the definition of the ALP in 1973.[1]

Ideology[]

Young Labor emulates many of the functions of the senior party. National and State conferences are held yearly where policy is submitted and debated by elected delegates and members of Young Labor.

Activities and roles[]

Young Labor is most active during state and federal elections, campaigning in marginal seats. The youth wing of the party may organise members to door knock an electorate or set up a stand in shopping centres to hand out political party notes. Members are often also asked to 'letterbox' party advertising.

Each year Australian Young Labor holds a conference in a capital city. 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 National Young Labor President is a non-voting representative on the Australian Labor Party National Executive.

Organisation[]

Each state has its own branch of Young Labor, functioning as a party unit (referred to as New South Wales Young Labor, Victorian Young Labor, etc.). Nationally, the branches are federated to the National organisation, which has its own President and executive.

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.” [4]

On January 23, 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 absconded from his role to help controversial Republican candidate Ron Paul in his fight for the primaries.[5] Numerous factional rivalries re-emerged sparking bitter rivalries between members.[5]

In 2019, Nick Douros was elected National Secretary of AYL.[6] Douros was formerly a staffer for David Smith (Australian Capital Territory politician)[7] and ACT Young Labor President but resigned from both roles amidst allegations of bullying which were upheld by an internal disputes tribunal.[8][9]

References[]

  1. ^ a b History: Australian Young Labor[permanent dead link]
  2. ^ [1]"A.5 Any person 15 years and over can join the Party".
  3. ^ "home". NSW Young Labor. Retrieved 19 May 2019.
  4. ^ "Labor's bloody rituals lead to a dead end". The Sydney Morning Herald. 8 December 2004. Retrieved 18 January 2021.
  5. ^ a b "While Labor fights in Qld, its young leader joins GOP campaign". Crikey. 23 January 2012. Retrieved 18 January 2021.
  6. ^ White, Daniella (16 September 2019). "Former ACT Young Labor president accused of bullying made national secretary". The Canberra Times. Retrieved 18 January 2021.
  7. ^ Whyte, Sally (21 February 2019). "David Smith staffer resigned after bullying investigation". The Canberra Times. Retrieved 18 January 2021.
  8. ^ Baker, Michael Inman, Emily (26 August 2018). "'I'm going to make her life hell': ACT Young Labor bullying complaint". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 18 January 2021.
  9. ^ "'Bully the f*** out of her': ACT Young Labor president resigns after workplace allegations". www.abc.net.au. 20 February 2019. Retrieved 18 January 2021.

External links[]

Retrieved from ""