“I didn’t know there was a midwife at the ANMF.”

At a national conference in 2023, I was excited to run into a midwifery professor I had learned from during my Bachelor of Midwifery. We talked about my journey since my graduate year, and when I mentioned that I had been working for the union she said, “I didn’t know there was a midwife at the ANMF.”

The Australian Nursing Federation changed our name in 2013 to the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation to acknowledge the valuable skills and knowledge of midwife members. Most state and territory branches employ at least one professional officer with a midwifery background who is responsible for the midwifery portfolio. The Federal Office of the ANMF currently employs two professional officers registered as midwives.

Every month, these professional officers come together to discuss issues facing midwives around the country. The network celebrates wins from each Branch and learns from one another’s experience to agitate for better working conditions for midwives across the country. We contribute to national policy submissions on issues related to midwives and collaborate to appropriately represent our midwife members.

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