Federal Budget a win for workers

Great news: in this week’s Federal Budget, the government changed the tax system to make housing fairer and more accessible to everyone.

This is a union win! Over the last year, union members ramped up our collective efforts – at work and in our communities – to push for changes that put home ownership ahead of investment for profit.

Together, we called for reforms to negative gearing and capital gains tax to help tip the balance back toward working people – with changes phased in over time, to protect people who planned under the current rules and keep the system fair and stable.

Let’s take a look at what changes were announced in the Budget and what they mean.

The changes

Going forward, negative gearing will be limited to new builds only, with existing investments protected.

The Capital Gains Tax discount will be replaced with a tax on real gains (eg. nominal gains, minus inflation) from 1 July 2027. Currently, 83% of the benefit of the CGT discount goes to those in the top 10% of taxpayers by income (and of that, around a third goes to the top 1%).

These changes are backed by $2 billion in housing infrastructure funding, supporting the construction of 65,000 new homes by ensuring roads, water and power aren’t holding up supply. 

The Budget also delivers cost‑of‑living relief, including a permanent $250 tax cut for every worker through the Working Australians Tax Offset, and strengthens fuel security with a new east coast gas reservation and a $14.8 billion fuel resilience package to protect jobs and communities.

It also contained a crackdown on discretionary trusts, with the implementation of a minimum 30% tax on discretionary trusts from 1 July 2028 (with some exceptions). Over 90% of private trust wealth is held by the wealthiest 10% of households.

What does this mean for workers?

The reforms announced begin to unwind unfair Howard‑era tax settings that drove house prices up more than 400% – almost twice as fast as wages – locking an entire generation of Australians out of home ownership.

It means workers and young people will no longer be competing with professional landlords using tax breaks to bid up prices. And it reinforces the fact that homes should be places to live – not commodities for profit.

The changes to family trusts also makes the tax system fairer: workers shouldn’t pay more tax than asset‑rich Australians using loopholes – yet the average nurse or teacher often pays more than people using trusts to split their income. This change takes pressure off workers and helps fund essential services.

This is how we drive change

Coming together is how we get things done. Thousands of people added their name to our petition!

But there’s still more to do: we’ll keep pushing for stronger renters’ rights and more public housing to ensure greater housing affordability and stability.

Secure, affordable homes are fundamental to dignity and stability – and with the power of our movement, we can win the next round of reforms too.