Jenny Smith is a qualified, well-educated scientist who has been working in research for 25 years – but she's living a life of fear and uncertainty.

She is one of the victims of the "casualisation" of Australia's workforce, with research from the Australian Council of Trade Unions showing about 40 percent of Aussie workers have fallen into insecure work, on casual or short-term contracts.

"Thirty contracts, twelve jobs, four different departments," Jenny told A Current Affair .

Jenny Smith has worked in research for 25 years, but only ever in contracted roles. (9news)

"I've only recently, for the first time ever, had a contract that's longer than 12 months. IN the past, they've been shortened down to four months."

Many sectors have been affected by the casualisation of labour, from hospitality and retail to teaching and mining.

ACTU secretary Sally McManus said the situation in Australia was "not normal".

"We can't accept this as a movement but really as a society, it's a big problem for working families where they can't plan for the bills in the future, where they can't plan for the future full stop," she said.

She said she lived a life of fear and uncertainty. (9news)

"It puts so much stress on individuals and that flows on obviously to the whole of the family."

It's claimed Australia has the third highest rate of non-standard forms of work in the developed world, behind only the Netherlands and Switzerland.

Ms McManus said casual and contract workers had very little security in the workplace, which discouraged them from asking for job security or a pay rise.

Queensland man Peter Eime worked in waste disposal for three decades, but said he was only in a permanent role for about four and a half years.

ACTU secretary Sally McManus said there was a class of workers who had less rights than workers 100 years ago. (9news)

"You sort of stood banging your head against the wall, because as a casual you just really have no rights," he said.

"You know, it's just, go to work, earn your dollar and go away."

He's now unemployed and struggling to find work.

Peter Eime said of 30 years in waste disposal, he was only employed full-time for less than five. (9news)

"It's probably a silly thing to say but I just felt like crying because I felt useless," he said.

Ms McManus said there was a whole class of workers with fewer rights than workers did a century ago.

The ACTU is calling for an urgent overhaul of the workforce.