After a year in which the Opposition Leader has been dogged by the royal commission and his performance in the witness stand, Labor will attempt to demonstrate to voters it too is prepared to crack down on corruption.

The government has been stymied in its efforts to introduce penalties for corrupt trade union officials that mirror those that apply to directors and executives of corporations, prompting the government to say Labor is running a protection racket for unions.

But Labor's policy aims to show it has "zero tolerance for criminality or corruption in the union movement".

The announcement comes after the bosses of the CFMEU in Victoria were arrested and charged on Sunday with allegedly blackmailing concrete company Boral. John Setka and his deputy, Shaun Reardon, face up to 15 years in jail if they are found guilty.

Key elements of the proposal Mr Shorten will unveil on Monday include a requirement for much greater disclosure of who funds union elections.

Labor will also lower the threshold for the disclosure of all political donations from $13,000 to $1000.

A Labor government would significantly enhance the powers available to investigate union misconduct.

While it does not go as far as what the Coalition is proposing, Labor would give the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) the power to investigate serious contraventions of the Fair Work Act.

The general manager of the Fair Work Commission would also be able to refer matters to ASIC and would receive an increase of $4.5 million in funding.

"Labor has zero tolerance for criminality or corruption in the union movement and has consistently argued that any criminal conduct in the union movement must be investigated by police and prosecuted in the court," Mr Shorten said.

"This new package of reforms will help ensure that criminal conduct is detected at the earliest opportunity and dealt with by the full force of the law."

The opposition would double the maximum penalty for criminal offences under the Fair Work Act and will introduce penalties of up to $216,000 "for paid officials for the most egregious conduct".

Mr Shorten said Labor would expand whistleblower protections in the public sector to include the private sector, registered organisations and not-for-profits and would require registered organisations to rotate their auditors every five years.

"Labor's proposed governance changes are measured yet tough, and will support unions in their transition to a modern movement, which continues to advocate for nation changing reforms," he said.

Mr Shorten said the opposition had "identified a problem and we're separating it from the politics, unlike the Abbott-Turnbull government".

"At the core of the Liberals and their political ideology, is a desire to destroy the ability of unions to effectively represent workers, making it easier to rip away pay and conditions like penalty rates," he said.