The Labor Right (LR), also known as Labor Unity or Unity, is one of the two major political factions of the Australian Labor Party (ALP). It is nationally characterised by economic liberalism policies, and competes with the Labor Left faction, which leans toward democratic socialism. Labor Right is composed of autonomous groups in each state and territory of Australia. The groups within the Labor Right come together as a broad alliance at the national level. The faction includes members with a range of political perspectives, including centrism, partial privatisation, Keynesianism, Laborism, and social conservatism (as a minority).

State branches

Factional power usually finds expression in the percentage vote of aligned delegates at party conferences. The power of the Labor Right varies from state to state, but it usually relies on certain trade unions, such as the Australian Workers' Union (AWU), Transport Workers Union (TWU), the Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees Association (SDA), Plumbing and Pipe Trades Employees Union (PPTEU) and the Health Services Union (HSU). These unions send delegates to the conferences, with delegates usually coming from the membership, the administration of the union or local branches covered by their activists. State-based factions (national sub-factions) which make up Labor Right include:

New South Wales

Queensland

Australian Capital Territory

Victoria

Western Australia

Northern Territory

South Australia

Tasmania

Political views

The faction is most famous for its support of Third Way policies such as the economic rationalist policies of the Bob Hawke and Paul Keating governments, including floating the Australian dollar in December 1983, reductions in trade tariffs, taxation reforms such as the introduction of dividend imputation to eliminate double-taxation of dividends and the lowering of the top marginal income tax rate from 60% in 1983 to 47% in 1996, changing from centralised wage-fixing to enterprise bargaining, the privatisation of Qantas and Commonwealth Bank, making the Reserve Bank of Australia independent, and deregulating the banking system.

Federal Members of the Labor Right

‡ Sterle was formerly a member of the now-defunct Centre Left.