Australia’s profit-to-member super funds have created a new collective body to be a strong voice for more than 10 million Australians, including those in Hume and Whittlesea.
The Super Members Council of Australia’s primary purpose will be to protect and advance the interests of members throughout their lives, while earning superannuation at work and benefiting from it in their retirement.
Jointly created by the super funds who were members of Australian Institute of Superannuation Trustees (AIST) and Industry Super Australia (ISA), the new body will build on their impressive legacies and bring a new focus for the contemporary Australian economy.
Interim Chair Nicola Roxon said, “The Super Members Council will advocate for the interests of the more than 10 million Australians who belong to a profit-to-member super fund, to ensure superannuation policy is stable, effective and equitable.
“The nature of work and the workforce itself are changing, as are patterns and expectations in retirement. As many members’ balances grow, those in lower paid or less secure work risk being left behind.
“The long-term interests of millions of Australians will be well served by a new collective body that can be a strong, thoughtful and compelling voice about superannuation policy, advocating to all levels of government and industry.
“Our promise is member-centric advocacy that seeks to work with all political parties to deliver the best possible retirement outcomes for the millions of Australians we represent.”
The Super Members Council will be an inclusive body, bringing together funds of all sizes to represent more than 10 million Australians who hold more than $1.4 trillion in assets.
It will be operational from 1 October 2023.
The foundation funds are eight of Australia’s largest, Australian Retirement Trust, AustralianSuper, Aware Super, Cbus Super, HESTA, Hostplus, Rest Super and UniSuper.
The foundation funds have each nominated a director to the governing Board and look forward to welcoming three further directors chosen by the small-to-medium sized profit-to-member funds. An employee and employer representative will each join as non-voting directors.
