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Amanda Rishworth
Amanda Louise Rishworth (born 10 July 1978) is an Australian politician. She is a member of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and has been Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations in the Albanese government since 2025. She was previously the Minister for Social Services from 2022 to 2025, as well as the Minister for the National Disability Insurance Scheme in 2025. She has been a member of the House of Representatives since the 2007 federal election, representing the South Australian seat of Kingston.
Rishworth was born on 10 July 1978, at Flinders Medical Centre in Bedford Park, South Australia. She is one of three children born to Judith and Leslie Rishworth.
Risworth attended Unley High School. She was a retail worker and swimming instructor while also doing volunteer surf lifesaving duties at Seacliff. She later worked as an organiser and trainer for the Shop Distributive and Allied Employees Association (SDA) and was president of Australian Young Labor in 2000.
Rishworth studied psychology at Flinders University where she was president of the students' union before furthering her studies at the University of Adelaide with a master's degree in clinical psychology. She then became a practising psychologist in 2005 working in the delivery of mental health care to the community.
Rishworth was a Labor candidate at the 2006 state election for the electoral district of Fisher, where she was defeated by sitting independent Bob Such. Labor received a 59.4 per cent two-party-preferred vote from a 15.1-point swing against the Liberals, marking the first time since the 1985 state election that Labor won the two-party-preferred vote in Fisher.
In November 2006 Rishworth was preselected unopposed to contest the key marginal seat of Kingston, located in the south of Adelaide, at the 2007 federal election. She was up against the sitting Coalition member Kym Richardson who held the most marginal seat for his party after winning it at the 2004 federal election by just 119 votes. Two opinion polls conducted throughout the year by The Advertiser had a swing to Rishworth of up to 7 per cent. Key issues she concentrated on included the lack of broadband access in the electorate, as well as the shortage of doctors. During a debate on industrial relations centring on the Howard government's controversial WorkChoices legislation, Rishworth was forced to debate minister Joe Hockey after Richardson pulled out with a prior commitment. Once the election campaign began local announcements included a $12.5 million GP Super Clinic and a $7 million upgrade to the South Road and Victor Harbor Road intersection. A poll midway through the campaign had Rishworth with a similar lead over Richardson to earlier opinion polls and on election day she ended up defeating him with a 54.4 per cent two-party-preferred vote from a 4.5-point swing, one of the seats that took the party from opposition to government after nearly 12 years.
Rishworth gave her first speech to the House of Representatives in February 2008. She spoke of the time when she was a retail worker at Toys "R" Us during her teenage years and was offered an Australian workplace agreement (AWA) as a result of new laws introduced by the Howard government, which she refused to sign and as a result was put out of work.
"Industrial relations has been important to me for many years. I felt the hard edge of the 1996 workplace relations legislation when I was offered an AWA while employed by a large American retailer. I refused to sign and was no longer offered work despite my five years of loyal service. I was 19 years old at the time. Hence, industrial reform and the enforcement of AWAs is not merely an abstract concept for me."
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Amanda Rishworth
Amanda Louise Rishworth (born 10 July 1978) is an Australian politician. She is a member of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and has been Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations in the Albanese government since 2025. She was previously the Minister for Social Services from 2022 to 2025, as well as the Minister for the National Disability Insurance Scheme in 2025. She has been a member of the House of Representatives since the 2007 federal election, representing the South Australian seat of Kingston.
Rishworth was born on 10 July 1978, at Flinders Medical Centre in Bedford Park, South Australia. She is one of three children born to Judith and Leslie Rishworth.
Risworth attended Unley High School. She was a retail worker and swimming instructor while also doing volunteer surf lifesaving duties at Seacliff. She later worked as an organiser and trainer for the Shop Distributive and Allied Employees Association (SDA) and was president of Australian Young Labor in 2000.
Rishworth studied psychology at Flinders University where she was president of the students' union before furthering her studies at the University of Adelaide with a master's degree in clinical psychology. She then became a practising psychologist in 2005 working in the delivery of mental health care to the community.
Rishworth was a Labor candidate at the 2006 state election for the electoral district of Fisher, where she was defeated by sitting independent Bob Such. Labor received a 59.4 per cent two-party-preferred vote from a 15.1-point swing against the Liberals, marking the first time since the 1985 state election that Labor won the two-party-preferred vote in Fisher.
In November 2006 Rishworth was preselected unopposed to contest the key marginal seat of Kingston, located in the south of Adelaide, at the 2007 federal election. She was up against the sitting Coalition member Kym Richardson who held the most marginal seat for his party after winning it at the 2004 federal election by just 119 votes. Two opinion polls conducted throughout the year by The Advertiser had a swing to Rishworth of up to 7 per cent. Key issues she concentrated on included the lack of broadband access in the electorate, as well as the shortage of doctors. During a debate on industrial relations centring on the Howard government's controversial WorkChoices legislation, Rishworth was forced to debate minister Joe Hockey after Richardson pulled out with a prior commitment. Once the election campaign began local announcements included a $12.5 million GP Super Clinic and a $7 million upgrade to the South Road and Victor Harbor Road intersection. A poll midway through the campaign had Rishworth with a similar lead over Richardson to earlier opinion polls and on election day she ended up defeating him with a 54.4 per cent two-party-preferred vote from a 4.5-point swing, one of the seats that took the party from opposition to government after nearly 12 years.
Rishworth gave her first speech to the House of Representatives in February 2008. She spoke of the time when she was a retail worker at Toys "R" Us during her teenage years and was offered an Australian workplace agreement (AWA) as a result of new laws introduced by the Howard government, which she refused to sign and as a result was put out of work.
"Industrial relations has been important to me for many years. I felt the hard edge of the 1996 workplace relations legislation when I was offered an AWA while employed by a large American retailer. I refused to sign and was no longer offered work despite my five years of loyal service. I was 19 years old at the time. Hence, industrial reform and the enforcement of AWAs is not merely an abstract concept for me."
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