Michael Forshaw

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Michael George Forshaw (born 11 January 1952), Australian politician, has been a member of the Australian Senate for the state of New South Wales since May 1994, representing the Australian Labor Party.

Forshaw was born in Sydney. He was educated at the University of Sydney, where he graduated in arts, and the University of New South Wales, where he graduated in law. He was admitted as a barrister in 1984.

Forshaw began employment with the Australian Workers' Union in 1975 as an Industrial Officer and was elected as the union's Assistant General Secretary in 1989. In 1991 Forshaw was elected as the General Secretary of the AWU when he negotiated the amalgamation of the AWU with the Federation of Industrial Manufacturing & Engineering Employees (formally the Federated Ironworkers' Association of Australia) to form the AWU-FIMEE Amalgamated Union. From 1993 until entering the Senate in 1994 Forshaw was the Joint National Secretary of the AWU-FIMEE Amalgamated Union (which changed its name back to the AWU in 1995).

Forshaw is married to Sutherland Shire Councillor Jan Forshaw.