Interview with Leon Compton, ABC Radio Tasmania

Event: Interview with Leon Compton, ABC Radio Tasmania
Date: 15 July 2024, 8:55am AEST
Speakers: Denita Wawn, Chief Executive Master Builders Australia
Topics: CFMEU investigation

E&OE

Leon Compton, ABC Radio Tasmania: This morning thousands of CFMEU members listening in, heading off to work on job sites various, but particularly as an example, the Bridgewater Bridge construction project. The union’s large, it’s powerful, and its members make up a large part, as I said of the workforce, on major projects around Australia. Often those projects are to build government infrastructure, funded by taxpayers. CFMEU members are well paid for their work. The union is heavily involved with safety on job sites. But the questions raised last night by 60 Minutes, have members of the leadership been infiltrated by members of outlaw motorcycle gangs? Are union leadership demanding kickbacks from companies that will work on major projects? And what’s happening, if anything, here in Tasmania? Let’s say good morning to Denita Wawn, CEO of the Master Builders of Australia, I’ll just press that button and say good morning, Denita Wawn to you.

Denita Wawn, CEO Master Builders Australia: Good morning, Leon.

Leon: So, we’ve seen allegations, serious allegations, made over the conduct of the CFMEU’s senior leadership in parts of the mainland. Should there be anything to be concerned about here in Tasmania?

Denita: Well, there was no evidence suggested over the weekend, but nevertheless, we need to be concerned about Tasmania given that the Victorian branch of the CFMEU, that was the subject of this investigative report, also has control over the CFMEU in Tasmania. As such, we have called for a series of investigations to, of regulators, to seriously consider these allegations that have been aired over the last few days.

Leon: Who do you want conducting those investigations, Denita Wawn?

Denita: We believe it needs to be a multiple pronged attack in terms of police, both at a state and federal level, to consider the criminal allegations. We also need to consider the ACCC from an anti-competitive perspective. And of course, the Fair Work Ombudsman, in their role around the behaviour of unions and officials, also needs to consider a range of potential breaches of Fair Work provisions. But we’ve also asked the government to go further, and that is give protection to those complainants about the CFMEU, in when they want to give evidence. We have members that are consistently complaining of this type of behaviour –

Leon: Why would they need protection?

Denita: Well, because of retribution. We know that from activity that if you complain about allegations of illegal behaviour, there will be retribution. There will be bullying. There’ll be thuggery. Your business will no longer be given work and so forth. The list goes on, death threats and so forth. They are fearful for their lives and their livelihood and their employees. And as such, there needs to be greater protection for those who want to complain. At the moment they don’t have any protections whatsoever. There is also no provision in the Fair Work Act for the Fair Work Ombudsman to take away an official standing if they are recidivist offenders. So, there are new laws that should be introduced, at the bare minimum, in the spring sittings when federal parliament returns.

Leon: What confidence do you have that the Labor Party, who be the party of power at the moment at a federal level, will do that?

Denita: Well, it’s been disappointing that they abolished the ABCC, that was a regulator that was looking specifically at the behaviour of the construction division of the CFMEU. That was abolished soon after they came to power. And it’s certainly seen an increase in behaviour. We want them to review that decision. They might not go the whole way, but they certainly could have a good start in protecting our members and others from this type of alleged behaviour.

Leon: If, for my listeners this morning, who on construction sites or for people who said goodbye to them at the door as they said- sent them off to those jobs for the day, they would want the CFMEU to be militant about safety on work sites. They want them to be strong about pay and conditions. How do you make sure that the union can still do that but also be sanctioned where illegal behaviour has been concerned?

Denita: Absolutely, Leon. Unions are really important part of our community. They play a vital role in ensuring the safety and wellbeing of any workers, and we applaud them for that. What we don’t applaud is bad behaviour. And that’s why we’ve made the recommendation that those officials that are doing the wrong thing, and are recidivist in their behaviour, that are undertaking criminal or ongoing civil unrest in breaching laws, they should be held to account and their status removed as a union official. That would be, potentially, far more effective than a deregistration of the CFMEU, because you’ll simply see something else occurring as was the case with the abolition of the BLF in the 80s.

Leon: Denita Wawn, good to talk to you this morning from the Master Builders Association.

Media contact:
Dee Zegarac
National Director, Media & Public Affairs
0400 493 071
dee.zegarac@masterbuilders.com.au