Martin John Ferguson AM (born 12 December 1953) is an Australian former Labor Party politician who was the Member of the House of Representatives for Batman from 1996 to 2013. He served as Minister for Resources and Energy and Minister for Tourism in the Rudd and Gillard governments from 2007 to 2013.

Before entering Parliament, Ferguson spent a long career as a trade unionist, being General Secretary of the Federated Miscellaneous Workers' Union from 1984 to 1990 and President of the Australian Council of Trade Unions from 1990 to 1996. He is the son of Jack Ferguson who was Deputy Premier of New South Wales from 1976 to 1984. His brother is Laurie Ferguson, also a long-serving Labor MP.

Born in Sydney to Jack Ferguson and Mary Ellen, Ferguson was educated at St Patrick's College, Strathfield, and the University of Sydney. After leaving university, he became a research officer at the Federated Miscellaneous Workers' Union, eventually rising to become Assistant General Secretary, and later General Secretary in 1984, during which time he was also appointed as a member of the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) executive board.^[1]

As FMWU General Secretary, and from 1985 to 1990 as Vice President of the ACTU, Ferguson worked closely alongside the likes of Bill Kelty and Simon Crean to negotiate with the Hawke-Keating government the Prices and Incomes Accord. After Crean's election to the House of Representatives at the 1990 election, Ferguson was elected his replacement as ACTU President, and became a member of the Governing Body of the International Labour Organization.^[1] For his services to industrial relations in Australia, Ferguson was made a Member of the Order of Australia in 1996.^[2]

Ferguson won preselection for the safe Labor seat of Batman in 1995, after a deal was negotiated between the right-wing Labor Unity faction in Victoria and the ALP National Executive. At the local level, the majority Greek party membership, largely resulting from heavy branch stacking, was likely to support a candidate other than Ferguson, however no local candidate was likely to receive support from the 50 per cent vote in the preselection panel which had been elected by the Victorian ALP State Conference. The other candidates, Jenny Mikakos and Theo Theophanous, then members of competing Left factions, were forced to withdraw from a local preselection plebiscite in favour of Ferguson, as a result of these negotiations.^[3][4]

After his election to the House of Representatives in March 1996, new Opposition Leader Kim Beazley appointed Ferguson as Shadow Minister for Regional and Urban Development and Shadow Minister for Transport and Infrastructure. He remained in the Shadow Cabinet under the leaderships of Simon Crean, Mark Latham and Kevin Rudd. After the latter won the 2007 election, Ferguson was appointed Minister for Resources and Energy and Minister for Tourism. He continued in both roles after Julia Gillard succeeded Rudd as Prime Minister in June 2010, and resigned from both in March 2013, ahead of his retirement from Parliament that August.^[1]

Since leaving parliament in 2013, Ferguson has continued to advocate for Australia's tourism, energy and resources sector. As of 2019, Ferguson was the chairman of the Clare Valley Wine & Grape Association,^[15] the chairman of the advisory board of APPEA and has commercial interests in the sector as a non-executive director of Seven Group Holdings and BG Group.^[16] Since June 2015, Ferguson has also been Chair of Tourism Accommodation Australia.^[17]

In March 2020, Ferguson was appointed as a part-time Expert Panel member on the Fair Work Commission for the following five years.^[18]

On 19 May 2014, the Australian Labor Party's WA Executive endorsed a motion to expel him from the party. However he has refused to resign and continues to be a member.^[19]

• Ferguson Left
• First Rudd Ministry