Belly, there is a significant difference between close contact and no contact. I've not observed any involved in my workplace (we have a number) who I think put their members ahead of the ALP. On the other hand the nurses union and police union appear willing to go public with issues impacting their members. There are a mixture.

On the original topic - I don't think union membership should ever be a condition of employment (as they once were) nor should unions take money collected from membership fee's to fund any political party. As long as safeguards were in place to ensure no member was bullied for not doing so it might be appropriate to allow individual members to nominate to pay some extra to support a party (as I pay extra on my electricity account to support a rescue chopper).

I think we are already agreed that all sides of politics need watching when it comes to worker protections.

R0bert