Closing Date
Location: Melbourne, with some travel required
Classification: Electorate Officer C, ongoing
Work pattern: Full-time, with irregular work hours required Salary: $131,813 per annum plus 15.4% superannuation
Reports to: Senator
Start date: January 2026
ABOUT STEPH
Steph Hodgins-May is the Australian Greens Senator for Victoria. She took her seat in Parliament in May 2024 and is the Greens spokesperson for early childhood education, democracy and resources, and assistant spokesperson for climate and energy.
Steph has a background in environmental law and has been an adviser to the United Nations and the Head of Pacific for a major international not-for-profit, working in strong allyship with Indigenous frontline Pasifika communities for climate justice.
Steph is committed to using her position in the parliament to fight the combined climate and inequality crises and work with grassroots communities to build collective power.
ABOUT THE ROLE
The Chief of Staff is an experienced people manager and senior adviser to Senator Hodgins-May.
The Chief of Staff manages the senator’s team working across Melbourne and Canberra offices. They support the senator with strategy development and implementation, and provide strategic, campaign, policy and media advice.
The role requires some travel and irregular hours, but the Chief of Staff is not required to accompany the senator to Canberra for all parliamentary sitting weeks.
This is an exciting opportunity to make a meaningful impact in progressive politics while working at the heart of the Greens’ operations.
KEY DUTIES
- Recruit, onboard and train new staff
- Manage the team across Melbourne and Canberra offices and ensure the maintenance of a high-performance team culture
- Undertake regular performance development, performance management and coaching for the team
- Lead the development and execution of strategic initiatives and priorities
- Manage office resources to implement the senator’s agenda
- Provide high-level political, campaign, policy, communications and media advice
- Ensure the development and maintenance of strong relationships on behalf of the senator with Greens MPs, senior Greens party officials and external stakeholders, including MPs from other parties, journalists, and portfolio and community stakeholders
- Accompany the senator to meetings and events, including at parliamentary engagements and public events, and represent the senator at such events and meetings if required
- Where required, support the work of the whole team, including writing speeches, media releases, senator’s diary management and responding to constituent correspondence
SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE REQUIRED
- Demonstrated leadership experience, including successfully managing staff and establishing and maintaining a high-performance workplace culture
- Strong analytical skills and demonstrated capacity to comprehend complex issues, think strategically and adapt to rapidly changing circumstances
- Excellent organisational and time management skills with a capacity to work under pressure, be flexible, take initiative and deal with tight deadlines and competing priorities
- High-level skills in strategic planning, strategy implementation and evaluation
- Demonstrated experience in strategic resource management, including human and financial resources
- High-level interpersonal and communication skills, including consultation, negotiation, networking, relationship management and conflict resolution
- Demonstrated ability to communicate complex ideas clearly and persuasively, including through the preparation of briefings, correspondence and public messaging
- A demonstrated understanding of the Australian political context, parliamentary processes and the Australian media landscape
- Passion for progressive politics and commitment to the Australian Greens’ values and policies
DESIRABLE SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE
- Previous experience working with the Australian Greens will be highly regarded
- Experience in electoral or issues-based campaigning activities,
- A current driver’s licence and access to a car
PAY AND CONDITIONS
The position is offered under the Members of Parliament (Staff) Act 1984, and employment conditions are outlined in the Commonwealth Members of Parliament Staff Enterprise Agreement 2024-27.
The position is offered at an Electorate Officer C classification with a salary of $99,305 per annum. In addition to the salary, an Electorate Staff Allowance is offered in recognition of long and irregular hours, in lieu of overtime pay. This allowance will be $32,508 per annum.
A probationary period of three months will apply and may be subject to extension by a maximum of two months. All employees are expected to sign a confidentiality and code of conduct agreement before the commencement of their employment.
Generous employer-sponsored superannuation of 15.4% also applies, as does travel allowance for any work-related overnight travel.
The successful applicant will be required to comply with their obligations under the Behaviour Codes and Standards.
HOW TO APPLY
Please email a two-page cover letter addressing the selection criteria and roles and responsibilities, along with your resume, to victoria@senatorsteph.com by 11.59 pm on Friday, the 21st of November. Applicants who progress to the next stage will be required to complete a task.
For further information, please contact Victoria Taylor at 0475554027 or victoria@senatorsteph.com, using the subject line: Chief of Staff enquiry.
The Australian Greens are an equal opportunity employer. We encourage applications from any interested and qualified people. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are strongly encouraged to apply. We don’t discriminate on the basis of sex, age, race, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or disability. We welcome people with lived experience of racism and those from diverse communities to apply for all our roles.