The ACTU believes Prime Minister Tony Abbott will call an early election before the May budget and is ramping up its grassroots campaign.
The peak union body plans to repeat the strategy employed during the recent Victorian and Queensland elections targeting key marginal seats.
ACTU president Ged Kearney says there's a real possibility Mr Abbott will call an early election.
"We don't think he'll go to another budget," Ms Kearney told an event on the sidelines of the ALP national conference in Melbourne on Sunday.
"The budget in May had all the hallmarks of an election budget with a basket of tax cuts and other sweeteners for key Liberal Party constituencies and smaller voters, such as small business."
Mr Abbott's election strategy would probably be focused on national security.
"It's a cynical political strategy that not only treats voters as mugs but totally ignores the serious issues facing workers and their families around the country."
The coalition government maintains the next election will be held when it is due, around September next year.
The ACTU is already rolling out its federal campaign around Australia and is embedding full-time union organisers in marginal seats.
"As we've shown in the union movement over the last six months or so in the Victoria and Queensland state elections, grassroots doorknocking, one-on-one conversations is the best campaign that you can do and it turns votes," Ms Kearney said.
"The campaign won't be fought in Parliament House in Canberra.
"It will be in our communities and our goal is to target every single swinging or coalition-voting union member."
Workers will phone 400,000 union members to find out their main issues and then someone will doorknock their homes to discuss matters.
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