Jim Toohey

James Philip Toohey (11 July 1909 – 18 August 1992) was an Australian politician and trade unionist. He was a member of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and served as a Senator for South Australia from 1953 to 1971. He was an influential figure in the party's South Australian branch and also in the powerful Vehicle Builders' Employees' Federation.

Early life Toohey was born on 11 July 1909 in Rose Park, South Australia. He was the son of Lilian (née Morgan) and James Patrick Toohey. His father worked as a builder's labourer.

Toohey was raised in Adelaide's western suburbs, attending both state schools and Catholic schools. He left school at the age of fourteen as his family could not afford to support his further education. He worked for periods at the factories of Holden & Frost Ltd, Harris, Scarfe, Ltd., and Scott Bonnar & Co., then took up an apprenticeship as a joiner with Baldock & Sons. He experienced a period of unemployment during the Great Depression, but by the 1930s was working for coachbuilding firm T. J. Richards & Sons. He later joined its primary customer General Motors-Holden's Ltd.

Personal life Toohey married Margaret Griffin in 1937; there were no children of the marriage. He retired to his home at West Beach and later moved to a retirement village at West Lakes. He died on 18 August 1992 at Western Community Hospital in Henley Beach.