The Federal Court has condemned the construction union’s “disgraceful and shameful” history of law-breaking, warning that the union could not expect to stay registered in its current form given its inability to rein in “aberrant” conduct.
In a scathing judgment, judge Richard Tracey imposed $271,500 in penalties on the Construction Forestry Maritime Mining and Energy Union and two officials, finding the union’s non-compliance with the law was “anathema” to a democratic society.
In a separate decision, by a 2-1 majority, the full Federal Court upheld $306,000 in penalties on the union. Judge John Logan compared the CFMEU’s “systemic unlawful conduct” to the behaviour of the deregistered Builders Labourers Federation.
The Federal Circuit Court had last year imposed that maximum $306,000 penalty after the union’s former Queensland president Dave Hanna contravened right-of-entry laws at a Fortitude Valley construction site and threatened to bury a mobile phone down a site manager’s throat.
Describing the union’s penal history as “disgraceful and shameful”, Justice Logan said the maximum penalties were a “cruel necessity” designed to bring home to the CFMEU that it must force systemic behavioural change upon its construction division.
“When the BLF was a separate, federally registered industrial association, a past lengthy history of unlawful conduct led ultimately to its deregistration by parliament,’’ Justice Logan said.
“Amalgamation and the concentration of unlawful conduct in the (CFMEU’s) construction division undoubtedly makes the subject of deregistration more complex but an organisation which manifests an inability by its internal governance to rein in aberrant behaviour cannot expect to remain registered in its existing form.”
CFMEU construction division national secretary Dave Noonan said the union might seek leave to appeal the full court decision and the $306,000 in penalties to the High Court. He said Mr Hanna was no longer employed by the union.
Justice Tracey imposed a $245,000 fine on the union, finding it liable for right-of-entry breaches by two officials, Nigel Davies and Alex Tadic, at the Bendigo Theatre project in Victoria in 2014. Mr Davies was penalised $19,000 and Mr Tadic ordered to pay $7500. Mr Davies told a manager to “f..k off” when asked to leave the site. Mr Tadic also told a manager to “f..k off” and that he was “not dealing with a f..king pen pusher”.
The Australian Building and Construction Commission filed evidence showing 137 cases in which penalties had been imposed on the union over 15 years.
Justice Tracey said: “The union has adopted the attitude that it will not comply with any legislative constraints … with which it disagrees. Such an approach is an anathema in a democratic society.”
He said the penalty was significant but proportionate to the gravity of the offending. “The organisation is prepared to pay any penalties imposed by the court and treat such expenditure as a cost of pursuing its industrial ends,’’ he said.
Mr Noonan said the Bendigo project had been a “death trap” and a worker suffered serious head injuries after falling into a pit.
Workplace Minister Craig Laundy repeated a call for Bill Shorten to cut ties with the union.
Article by: EWIN HANNAN – WORKPLACE EDITOR- The Australian
Source: https://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/disgraceful-and-shameful-cfmeu-fined-577k-for-unlawful-conduct/news-story/b53da733a55e74dac1eda2790c0dca2e?csp=a64171f6c2d5706daf2cd54ebe92d2d4