The Australian Workers Union (AWU) says federal Labor is risking thousands of jobs with its “dud handshake agreement” with exporters.

Australian Workers' Union national secretary Daniel Walton has slammed what he sees as the government’s unwillingness to side with workers in the face of soaring gas prices.

It comes after Resources Minister Madeleine King recently struck a deal with three east coast gas exporting giants - the Santos, ConocoPhillips, and Shell-led ventures - to shore up supplies for the domestic market.

The deal should see the three liquefied natural gas producers based at Gladstone in Queensland set aside more than 150 petajoules of gas for the domestic market next year.

But Mr Walton says it is just like a previous 2017 Turnbull government deal that he argued “wasn't worth the paper it was written on”.

“It's infuriating that a Labor minister could champion the same exact same kind of dud handshake agreement struck by the Turnbull government,” Mr Walton said.

“Especially when the ACCC has since told us that agreement wasn't worth the paper it was written on.”

He said the government has left itself with a clear choice. 

“Defend the insane super profits that gas exporters are making from the Ukraine war or defend the future of Australian manufacturing and the hundreds of thousands of jobs it supports,” he said.

“I can't believe this is apparently a head scratcher for Labor.

“The party platform has already committed to use-it-or-lose-it conditions for offshore gas resources, a price trigger, and domestic reservation policies where necessary.

“It's time to actually walk the talk.”

Ms King says the government is standing by its deal with gas producers.