Tim Wilson (Goldstein, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Small Business) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

(1) condemns the Government's handling of corruption allegations within the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU), acknowledging that:

(a) the Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations continues to endorse its solution despite whistleblowers saying corruption is worse than it was before the appointment of the CFMEU Administrator;

(b) the Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations refuses to answer questions about new allegations of corruption since the Government put the CFMEU into administration;

(c) organisers were promoted into senior roles by the Administrator and subsequently sacked on allegations of accepting cartel kickbacks and corruption since the administration has been in place;

(d) meetings have been tolerated with known organised crime figures and meetings have seemingly been green lighted with violent misogynists since the administration has been in place;

(e) there are allegations of bribes and cartel kickbacks being paid with the knowledge and possible sanction of the administration;

(f) the union leader backed by the Government to reform the CFMEU, Zach Smith, directed a subordinate to secretly meet with a 'notorious construction industry fixer' and Melbourne 'underworld identity' Mick Gatto;

(g) despite claiming meetings between CFMEU officials and Mr Gatto could lead to up to two years in prison, the Administrator only issued a caution once it was revealed this meeting was made public;

(h) the union leader backed by the Government to reform the CFMEU, Zach Smith, has been having coffee and card catch ups with John Setka whose conduct was the basis for the appointment of the Administrator in the first place;

(i) the Administrator has seemingly sanctioned meetings between Mr Smith and Mr Setka and they continue to this day;

(j) the Prime Minister relies on Mr Smith's vote in meetings of the National Executive of the Australian Labor Party with other ministers; and

(k) the current Government's failure to take tough action is tainted by its acceptance of $7 million in donations from the CFMEU, and informs why it is backing the Administration even though whistleblowers are saying it is failing; and

(2) notes that:

(a) the Government is not taking the action needed to stop the corruption and cartel kickbacks that led the CFMEU to be put under administration because of its conflicts of interest;

(b) allowing the criminal and corrupt CFMEU to run rampant across residential, commercial and public projects, is pushing up costs to taxpayers and inflation, and is pushing up the cost of first homes by up to 30 per cent; and

(c) leaked advice from the Department of the Treasury states the Government will fail to reach the National Housing Accord target of 1.2 million homes by 2029 because it is putting the CFMEU ahead of first home buyers.

Australians should want a system of government that is free from corruption and cartel kickbacks, but the reality is we have nothing like that right now. Under the coalition government, we established the Australian Building and Construction Commission to rein in the criminal law-breaking and cartel kickbacks between the CFMEU and so many of the companies that go along with their destructive behaviour and of course their direct connection to the ACTU and the Australian Labor Party. The scale of corruption is unending, so there was more work to be done under the ABCC. But one of the first acts of this Labor government was to abolish the ABCC, take what little was left of the leash that held back the CFMEU's corruption and let it loose on the Australian community. Now they are complicit every step of the way in the corruption that has been engaged.

Corruption is corrosive to our democracy. After it was revealed the CFMEU was directly connected to criminal gangs, organised crime and bikies to access public projects, the Albanese government eventually had to admit that maybe they got it a bit wrong and shouldn't have let them completely off the leash. So they put the CFMEU under administration. Fifteen months on, the verdict is now in. It's not my opinion. It's not the Labor government's opinion. It's the opinion of whistleblowers who are now calling out the administration, saying that, ultimately, corruption has actually gotten worse. Only last week, Charles Farrugia went public on the program 60 Minutes to highlight the bullying and intimidation now systemic within the CFMEU. While the minister waxes lyrical about having the strongest possible course of action, the reality shows something completely different. The facts show now the administrator appointed figures who have since been sacked on allegations of corruption. Rather than destroying corruption, he has, tragically, become the enabler of it.

Fair Work reported in estimates that they would have grave concerns if meetings were approved between the Victorian head of CFMEU, Zach Smith, and, of course, John Setka. That happened. The administrator greenlit meetings with John Setka and has completely ignored meetings with Mick Gatto, simply issuing cautions. Recent evidence has been highlighted in the Age newspaper. Veterans that want to work on Victorian big-bill projects have been asked to pay corrupt kickbacks, simply for the right to work, in $10,000 brown paper bags. In Victoria, the CFMEU hires organised crime to attack companies. In New South Wales, contractors hire organised crime to respond to CFMEU thuggery. This is absurd.

First home buyers are paying the cost through higher costs for new apartment builds, and the cost is flowing on to CFMEU corruption. Taxpayers are paying an even bigger price through the higher cost of public projects, lower returns and lower value. More importantly, when higher costs go up on public projects, tomorrow, it is debt. In addition to that, it is taxes on future generations. It's all to finance and feed cartel kickbacks to the CFMEU. Taxpayers are paying a higher price, and the beneficiaries are criminal gangs, organised crime and bikies. I don't think it should shock anybody, and it amazes me there are Labor members speaking against this motion, but here they are—to be judged by the Australian people and to somehow stand by and say they think this corruption is acceptable. It is not acceptable.

Confidence in the administration has collapsed. The minister has strapped herself to the administrator in arguing that this is the strongest possible course of action, but nobody believes it. Three weeks ago, we wrote to her asking basic questions. She won't answer. Last week—this is how bad it got—the head of Victorian CFMEU, Zach Smith, who lent his numbers to the Prime Minister on their national executive of the Labor Party, self identified that he was sufficiently tainted that he removed himself. When even the corrupt are abandoning ship, you know it's bad. But he is still an adviser to the minister on her National Construction Industry Forum. When we asked her about it in parliament last week, she ran interference. There's no wonder the minister is blocking an inquiry into the CFMEU administration. She still continues to get advice from Zach Smith from the Victorian CFMEU.

We need a clear plan to address the shortcomings of this administration. That's why we need an inquiry, and we need Mr Smith out of the way. We need Australians' help. Go to timwilsonmp.com.au/cfmeu_inquiry to fight back and lend your name to stand up against CFMEU corruption.

Helen Haines (Indi, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Is the motion seconded?

Allegra Spender (Wentworth, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I second the motion and reserve my right to speak.

Claire Clutterham (Sturt, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

When it comes to the construction industry the focus of the Albanese Labor government is on creating a fair and transparent environment concentrated on ensuring that there are highly skilled and qualified workers in the various trades that we need to build a future made in Australia, including first and foremost to build the houses that this country needs. It's also focused on providing skilled and highly qualified educators within TAFE and other VET providers and within the apprenticeship sphere to ensure we have enough educators to train the workers we need to build a future made in Australia. The Albanese Labor government, under the leadership of the Prime Minister and the Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations, is focused on ensuring that the environment that these workers and educators will contribute to is free of corruption, criminality or violence.

Corruption, criminality and violence will not be tolerated and is not tolerated in any part of the construction industry by this government. We do not accept it, and suggestions by the member for Goldstein to the contrary are false. We don't accept it. It can't be like that. If the environment is affected by corruption or criminality or violence, the potential workers that we need will be disincentivised to join the building and construction industry, and we know that these kinds of disincentives cannot exist. We cannot afford it, because there is too much building work to do. The problems, however, that were deeply embedded in the industry are decades in the making and they need to be solved. Let's be clear though. They can't be solved overnight, and it is unhelpful and unrealistic to expect that.

Rather than continually drawing attention to them in a manner which lacks construction and is unproductive, those on all sides of politics need to come to the table and act in a bipartisan manner to ensure that the problems are solved as fast as possible. When all parties understand and agree that creating an environment where Australians are incentivised to work in the building and construction sector is actually in the best interests of all Australians and when all parties seek to promote this important outcome rather than continually seeking to undermine it for obviously individual purposes, only then can meaningful reform take place.

The Australian Building and Construction Commission did not work. We know this. It was ineffective in dealing with the cultural and substantive issues that had been embedded within the industry for decades. That's why, quite rightly, the ABCC was abolished by the Fair Work Legislation Amendment (Secure Jobs, Better Pay) Act 2022. The act also established the National Construction Industry Forum, which provides advice to the government on a wide range of issues in the construction industry—including workplace relations, skills, safety, productivity and industry culture. It has a balanced membership, with members who have experience representing employees plus an equal number of members who have experienced representing employers in the building construction industry.

Further the joint agency working group—an alliance between regulators and law enforcement agencies—is working in a methodical, careful and measured manner to take action to stamp out corruption, criminality and violence from the construction industry. Other tangible action being taken to stamp this out is the scheme of administration applied to the CFMEU's construction division. The difference between the achievements of the administrator—only in effect for 15 months—and the now defunct ABCC, which was ineffective, could not be clearer. The administrator has removed or accepted the resignations of more than 60 staff; has developed a national code of conduct and statement of expectations for all staff; has cracked down on gifts, organised crime and menacing behaviours by setting out clear consequences; and has established inquiries into state branches of the CFMEU. This work will continue until there is an environment of lawful and effective union functioning.

There are no quick fixes here, but the Albanese Labor government is committed to the task. We will keep working with employers, contractors, unions, state and territory governments, regulators and law enforcement agencies to ensure this critical industry is lawful, safe, fair, productive and sustainable for the future. We need it to be. It's in the interests of all Australians that it is. So it would be helpful and in the interests of all Australians if all sides of politics recognised this and contributed constructively.

Mary Aldred (Monash, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It's always a pleasure to follow my good friend and colleague the member for Sturt. I rise to support the motion moved by my friend and colleague the member for Goldstein. We're both proud Victorians, and we're both in absolute despair at the lawlessness that is pervading our great state at the hands of state and federal Labor governments.

The Saturday Paper, which is no cheerleader of the coalition, wrote over the weekend about payback for those who have blown the whistle on the CFMEU. The article says:

The costs have been stark for the whistleblowers. To start with, "going to war" against the corruption of the construction division of Victoria's CFMEU has meant their effective blacklisting from union job sites. One has worked very little in the past year, and bills are due. Christmas is near. Their partner has also felt the strain.

I'd also like to quote from the Weekend Australian that this issue has been raised again.

The CFMEU's manufacturing division has taken Federal Court action to lock in its split from the union's "dysfunctional and murky" construction division in a move that will formalise the creation of the 10,000-member Timber, Furnishing and Textiles Union.

The expected court approval will see the once influential CFMEU reduced to the construction division, which will be in administration for years, and the maritime division.

It goes on:

The departure of the manufacturing division follows the exit of the mining and energy division to form a stand-alone union.

Manufacturing division national secretary Michael O'Connor said on Friday "our members are looking forward to officially getting out".

I don't always agree with Michael O'Connor and his division, and I don't always agree with the pulp and paper division of the CFMEU, but locally, in the Latrobe Valley, there have been many occasions when I have stood up with those divisions on the issues of jobs and manufacturing. I remember Anthony Pavey, from the pulp and paper division of the CFMEU in the Latrobe Valley, stood up on behalf of his members who worked at Australian Paper, and Michael O'Connor has been a strong representative of the forestry division in the CFMEU. It is quite clear to see how appalled they are at the actions of the construction division of the CFMEU, that it is a stain on other divisions that are trying to get on with the business of representing their members.

I'd also like to point out that my colleague the member for Goldstein has been relentless in his pursuit of truth and justice on this issue, and he has yielded some results. Late last week the CFMEU's Zach Smith was forced off the Labor Party's National Executive after the Prime Minister had to distance himself from relying on Smith's support. That being so, the minister is still blocking a Senate inquiry into union corruption, which will still, unbelievably, rely on Smith as a key adviser. I have to ask, why is this government scared of the truth? We know that that resignation was as a direct result of sustained pressure by the member for Goldstein and the coalition, who have only one interest, and that is to get to the heart of this issue and to expose the conflict of interest that the Albanese Labor government is conflicted by.

We need an inquiry to reveal the full scale of corruption, cartel networks and why officials have been placed in positions that, it turns out later, have been sacked on allegations of corruption. This is really important; it goes to the heart of integrity and accountability in government. We are now 15 months along since the CFMEU was placed into administration. We've got whistleblowers who are saying corruption inside the CFMEU has got worse, not better. It's just outrageous. Instead of cracking down on corruption, this continues on and it's an absolute farce.

Under the Prime Minister's watch, the CFMEU are still refusing to answer questions. The government are still refusing to answer the most basic questions about CFMEU cartel kickbacks, despite the figure now climbing to $6.6 million. It's not good enough.

Emma Comer (Petrie, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Let's be absolutely clear. The Albanese Labor government does not tolerate corruption, criminality or violence in any part of the construction industry. Meaningful reform requires collective, ongoing efforts by all stakeholders. These problems are deeply embedded in the industry and have been decades in the making. They will not be solved overnight. The coalition and its failed and discredited ABCC utterly failed to deal with these problems. In fact, the appalling culture in the construction industry flourished under their watch. Multiple individuals involved in corruption, criminality and violence were allowed to retain their positions and continue their unlawful activities.

Now, we are cleaning up the mess. Following multiple referrals from the Albanese Labor government, regulators and law enforcement agencies are now working in a coordinated manner through the joint agency working group to stamp out corruption and violence within the construction industry. These include the AFP, state and territory police forces, the Fair Work Commission's general manager, the Fair Work Ombudsman, ASIC, the ATO and AUSTRAC. We have also taken tangible action to address misconduct within the CFMEU's construction division by placing it under a scheme of administration for up to five years. This administration has achieved more progress in 15 months than the failed ABCC managed in a decade. So far, the administrator has: removed or accepted the resignation of more than 60 staff; developed a national code of conduct and statement of expectations for all staff; made absolutely clear where the union stands on gifts, organised crime and menacing behaviour and the consequences of breaching those standards; and established several inquiries into state branches of the CFMEU.

The administrator, respected barrister Mark Irving KC, is undertaking complex and often dangerous work. He regularly acts on credible information received through a confidential whistleblower complaints process which has already received more than 500 complaints. He has initiated numerous investigations into the New South Wales, Queensland and Victorian branches of the CFMEU as well as into the union's finances and the Building Industry 2000 fund. Mr Irving has taken proactive action in response to these reports including: disciplinary measures; dismissals and expulsions of individuals from the union; issuing new contracts that set out clear standards of behaviour; establishing cultural change programs; and issuing notices to produce. This is what real reform looks like. We have full faith in Mr Irving's integrity and independence. Matters regarding the appointment of officers and staff of the union are for him to determine, not for politicians to interfere with.

The government's actions are already delivering results, but we also know that the problems are not confined to the CFMEU alone. Other parts of the industry, including employers and contractors, will have a significant role to play in cleaning up the construction sector. There are no quick fixes, but the government is committed to the task.

That is why we have established the National Construction Industry Forum. The NCIF meets at least twice a year and has endorsed a blueprint of reform that includes immediate work on the Joint Construction Industry Charter, setting shared goals and expectations for all construction industry participants. This is long-term work that is needed to make sure the industry is not only free from corruption but also productive and sustainable.

It stands in stark contrast to the years of neglect under the coalition, who turned a blind eye while those problems took root. Every major allegation of criminality in the sector occurred while the ABCC was in operation. The ABCC was ineffective, politicised and a waste of public funds. The appropriate response to criminal activity is not political theatre; it is a police response. That is exactly what the government has delivered—coordinated enforcement through the AFP, state and territory police, and regulatory agencies, all working alongside the CFMEU administrator to restore integrity.

Our government will not politicise ongoing investigations, nor will we allow anyone to be above the law. It was on the opposition 's watch that organised crime elements infiltrated the construction industry. They had nine years to act, and they failed. By contrast, this government has acted decisively, transparently and effectively. We are empowering whistleblowers, supporting law enforcement and working with the industry to change its culture from the ground up. This is a government committed to ensuring Australia's construction industry is one we can all be proud of. The Albanese Labor government will continue to take strong, coordinated action to stamp out corruption and criminality wherever it occurs, and we will continue to stand up for the thousands of honest workers who deserve a clean industry, decent pay and safe workplaces.

Allegra Spender (Wentworth, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on this important motion and echo serious concerns that I have and that my community has about the CFMEU and the corruption in the construction industry more broadly and to urge the government to take further action on this. While I support the administrator, I believe we need more than a three-year administrator because this has been an endemic problem for the last 40 years and it needs more action than one administrator to solve.

The corruption, thuggery and general misconduct in this industry have been one of the worst-kept secrets across the country for decades. While I support, as I said, the government's action in terms of appointing an administrator, we need to be honest that the Labor Party has turned a blind eye to endemic corruption and thuggery in the CFMEU for decades. The CFMEU made contributions of $4 million to the Albanese government's successful 2022 campaign, and the government only took real action in relation to the CFMEU when forced to by the actions of brave investigative journalists, particularly out of the SMH, who I pay credit to, who have made a real contribution here.

Let's talk about what's wrong with this industry. When I speak to people in this industry, as I do regularly, what I hear often is: 'Allegra, I'll speak to you, but do not tell anyone that I have spoken to you. Never mention what I have said, because these people could ruin my business overnight and they could destroy me and my family.' This is what's been going on, and it has been going on for decades. This is not the way the construction industry or any industry in our country should operate, particularly one that is so integral to our housing, to our infrastructure and to what makes this country work. So I put a pox on both the houses—on the Labor Party for turning a blind eye to the CFMEU's corruption for decades and on the coalition for failing to act effectively when they were in government for almost a decade and for putting forward the ABCC, which didn't actually deal with this and left us with this problem, which is still endemic.

The question really is: how do we make a change now to make that fundamental shift in the corruption and thuggery of this industry so that we do not need another royal commission in three, four or five years and that this changes once and for all? I believe we have a long way to go there. As I said, I support the appointment of the administrator. I think it has been imperfect. I think there are actions that they should have taken and questions for them to answer. But overall I do believe that this was a constructive approach as opposed to deregistration of the union, which I think would have only made things worse. But the truth is that the CFMEU administrator cannot deal single-handedly with the breadth of corruption, thuggery, misogyny and other issues facing this industry; it needs broader action. I and others wrote to the Prime Minister back in June last year and said, 'Appoint an administrator, but go much further. There are key issues that you need to have in mind,' and many of those are still relevant.

I want to talk through three of them. Firstly, the Master Builders Association has suggested—and I fully support—having an enhanced taskforce across the AFP, the state police bases, the Fair Work Ombudsman and the Fair Work Commission. We need a heavily resourced taskforce to address these issues of corruption or other sorts of criminal activity when they come up because the jurisdictional challenges in this industry are real. I know this firsthand from speaking to people about it. So this is something that we need resources for now.

Secondly, we also need competition reform. The industrial relations system, which is largely not subject to competition law, creates an environment where there are incentives for corruption. You can effectively ensure that the subcontractors that you're suggesting get the deals, and that is the perfect place for corruption to start and to fester. Until we change those incentives, and I think competition law is part of it, we will not fix this.

Thirdly, I believe we need to change our procurement laws, and I support the National Construction Industry Forum setting out clear behavioural standards. We need to give that teeth when it comes to procurement.

Finally, I believe we need a broader regulatory setting for the construction industry. If Labor were to back this, it would show that Labor is willing to really step into this rather than still play the political game on the ABCC. The ABCC failed. It did not address the issues. But, if the government does not put in a broader set of reforms that are permanent, it won't address the issues either. This is an industry that absolutely needs a fundamental overhaul for housing, infrastructure, clean energy infrastructure—you name it. We need the construction industry to work without thuggery.

Madonna Jarrett (Brisbane, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Let me be clear from the outset. This government will not tolerate corruption, criminality or violence in any workplace, including in the construction industry. But what we will tolerate are strong and effective unions that are there to look after workers and stop them being exploited. I'm a proud unionist. I come from a union family. I've seen what a positive difference unions make to individual workers and their families. The problems that we see in the construction industry are not the norm in the Labor movement; they're deeply embedded and have been decades in the making, and they won't be solved overnight.

But let's get one thing straight. I agree in some respects with some of the words from the member for Wentworth—under the coalition's nine years of failed leadership, the discredited Australian Building and Construction Code, ABCC, failed to deal with the problems within the CFMEU or within the construction industry. It failed. Those opposite were running around beating their chests and saying what a great cop the ABCC was going to be. Instead, we saw the exact opposite in terms of culture in the construction industry. A bad culture was allowed to flourish under their watch. Multiple individuals were involved. They were involved in corruption, criminality and violence, all while retaining their positions to continue to conduct unlawful activities.

Now, Labor is acting to clean up the mess. As the member for Petrie talked about earlier, following multiple referrals from the Albanese Labor government, our regulators and law enforcement agencies are working together through the joint agency working group to take strong action to stamp out corruption, criminality and violence. We've also taken real action to stamp out corruption in the CFMEU's construction division by placing them under administration for a period of five years.

A lot has been done in this time. Under the administration for the last 15 months there's been the removal of and acceptance of resignations from about 60 people. They've developed a national code of conduct and statement of expectations for staff and made it absolutely clear where the union stands when it comes to gifts, organised crime and menacing behaviours and what the consequences will be. They've also established several inquiries into state branches of the CFMEU.

On this side of the House, we believe in the right to organise and the right to join a union. The Labor Party was born out of the labour movement. That's why I'm proud to be part of a government that is the delivering for Australian workers. We have a wonderful resume of achievements since coming to office. What's Labor done? We've introduced multi-employer bargaining. In 2022 the Fair Work Legislation Amendment (Secure Jobs, Better Pay) Act enabled employees in certain sectors, such as child care and aged care, to bargain collectively across employers. We increased the minimum wage by 3.75 per cent, directly impacting 2.6 million workers. We made wage theft illegal by introducing criminal penalties as part of the closing the loophole reform. We've reduced the gender pay gap through reforms, including requiring large employers to report their gender pay gap, prohibiting pay secrecy clauses and introducing super paid on government parental leave. We've enhanced delegates' rights with reforms to strengthen the rights of union delegates in the workplace. We've legislated the right for employees to disconnect from work related communications outside their work hours. There have been changes to labour hire. Labour hire workers have new rules to potentially increase their pay. There is a national labour hire licensing scheme being established. There's a ban on non-compete clauses for workers earning under $175,000. Last week, we saw payday super, where workers will now be paid their superannuation the same day they get paid.

But it's not just industrial relations reforms that this government has introduced that has been good for workers. A tax cut for every Australian has delivered for working people. Being able to see a GP for free delivers for working people. Cheaper child care, energy relief and a five per cent deposit—these all deliver for working people. While those opposite will take every opportunity to attack working people, this Labor government will always stand up for working people and their families.

As I said, the Labor Party was born out of the labour movement, and that's why I'm so proud to be standing here today talking about the importance of what Labor is delivering for workers and why we need a strong union and labour movement. The problems in the construction industry are not the norm, and it's taken the Labor government to clean them up—because we want to see a strong and effective labour movement.

Monique Ryan (Kooyong, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

For over a century, unions have played a vital role in securing Australian workers' rights by advocating for fair wages, safe working conditions and job security. They've helped enforce workplace laws, protected against unfair dismissal and promoted equality and inclusion, by driving major reforms like paid leave, superannuation and antidiscrimination protections. Today, women are more likely than men to be union members in Australia. Women unionists have led campaigns for equal pay, for paid parental leave, for antidiscrimination laws and for accessible child care.

The Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union, the CFMEU, is an outlier. For years, it has been accused of corrupt and criminal misconduct and of having a culture of violence, intimidation, misogyny and bullying. Elements of this behaviour have been documented repeatedly by royal commissions and other inquiries, but they've never been effectively dealt with. We've heard from courageous journalists and from members of the industry that legitimate businesses and individuals are too susceptible to intimidatory tactics—they're too frightened of the potential for commercial or personal retribution to seek redress or to speak publicly about the ongoing issues within the CFMEU.

It's clear that the coalition's Australian Building and Construction Commission failed to bring these issues under control. It oversaw declining construction industry productivity and an increase in workplace injuries and deaths. In July 2024, along with crossbench colleagues, I asked the government for urgent and comprehensive action regarding the CFMEU. Our concern then, which remains, was that the CFMEU's infiltration by criminal elements and its actions within the construction industry compromise the integrity of government spending. They cause individual and social harm through alleged criminal activity, they increase building costs and they worsen housing affordability, business costs and inflation while eroding our economic productivity.

The Albanese government abolished the failed ABCC and the Regulated Organisation Commission, but it has not yet regulated an appropriate replacement body to exercise long-term oversight of the industry. The administrator it appointed in August 2024 has encountered very significant legal, operational and cultural challenges in reforming the union. That administrator, Mark Irving, recently noted that the work of his administration can only take the union so far. The problems across the industry are myriad. No single agent has the responsibility or the resources to fix all of them.

On behalf of the citizens of Kooyong, who have long expressed concerns about the criminal activities of the CFMEU and their effect on housing costs in our state, I call on the government to have the courage to act on this issue and to ensure that this country has a construction industry in which criminal behaviour is not tolerated, in which public investment in infrastructure maximises value for money and productivity and in which politics and politicians prioritise public interest over financial and political relationships with unions and lobbyists. I ask the government to provide adequate resourcing to support all levels of police and all levels of government to conduct thorough investigations into cases involving misuse of public money, abuse of powers of the union and fraud by actors in the construction sector.

I ask the Labor Party to put a permanent stop on receiving any donations or fees from the CFMEU. I ask the federal government to withhold infrastructure funding from state projects until the states show convincing evidence of their effective policing of criminal activity within the sector. I also ask the government to put in place a successor to the administrator. It should establish a new oversight body and legislative framework, staffed by a cross-jurisdictional police taskforce and representatives from industrial regulators, government agencies and industry representatives, to provide us with the accountability and cultural change that is required to permanently address the issues within the construction sector—not just within the CFMEU but also within the labour hire industry and the construction industry more generally.

This body should be developed with engagement across the parliament. It should be protected from political attack after every change in government. While bribery and corruption are allowed to fester in our construction industry, we all pay the price. We need to join together across the political lines to effectively address an ongoing blight on the Australian industrial landscape.

Renee Coffey (Griffith, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Unions have long been one of the most important forces for fairness and safety in Australian workplaces. They've fought for rights many take for granted now—the weekend, paid leave, safer work sites and fair pay. When unions work as they should, they give workers a voice, uphold dignity and protect lives, because every worker deserves to go home safe at the end of the day. So much of the work done in our construction industry is inherently dangerous. Every day workers, often young and often vulnerable, put their health and safety on the line to build the infrastructure our communities rely on—roads, hospitals and housing. It's hard, risky work, and these workers deserve to be paid fairly and treated with respect. Employers have a duty of care to keep their workers safe, not just because the law says so but because it's the right thing to do. Families should never have to worry about whether their loved ones will make it home from work.

Close to my community of Griffith, we've seen the heartbreaking consequences when those protections fail. In 2023, 29-year-old worker Daniel Sa'u lost his life when temperatures reached a sweltering 36.1 degrees Celsius while working on the Cross River Rail site in Moorooka. His wife described Daniel as a wonderful father to their three children, a loving son and someone deeply missed by all who knew him. And earlier that same year ,17-year-old Tyler Whitton was placed in an induced coma and died the next day after a fall at a construction site in West End. He had been working for just three months before he died, and he was so proud to be able to help support his family. Tyler's grandfather wrote of his beloved beautiful grandson that 'words cannot describe the pain and complete numbness we are all experiencing, knowing that we needed to let him go'. These tragedies show the real and ever-present risks faced by construction workers. They deserve safe workplaces, proper protections and the confidence that their employers are looking out for them. Every worker in Australia deserves that.

Last year, Australian investigative journalists exposed horrific practices in parts of the construction industry, alleged links to organised crime, misuse of union roles, as well as reports of violence, intimidation and misogyny. Criminality has no place in the union movement. Workers deserve a union they can trust and be proud of. When I knocked on almost 15,000 doors during the last campaign, I can tell you the CFMEU was raised with me every single day. Deputy Speaker Haines, I will leave it to you to surmise why that was. My community made it very clear to me they do not support corruption and criminality. They do not support standover tactics, bullying and sexual harassment. They do not support intimidation or abuse of power. Those behaviours have no place in any workplace, not in construction, not anywhere. In thousands of conversations across Griffith, I consistently heard people want representatives who stand up against thuggery and corruption, not stand on the same stage as it.

The Albanese government has been clear from the outset that there is no place for criminality, bullying, thuggery and intimidation in any workplace, including in the construction industry. The construction division of the CFMEU clearly failed to act in the best interests of its members and urgent action was needed, which the Albanese Labor government has delivered. We could not stand by and allow a once-proud union to be infiltrated by bikies and organised crime, or have bullying and thuggery part of its day-to-day business.

These problems did not appear overnight. They were deeply embedded and decades in the making, and we are determined to clean them up, which was why the construction division of CFMEU was placed under administration. Already, the administration has achieved more progress in 15 months than the former coalition government's failed and discredited ABCC managed in an decade. More than 60 staff have been removed or resigned, a new national code of conduct is in place, a clear statement of expectations now sets out where the union stands on gifts, organised crime and menacing behaviour, and what the consequences are for crossing that line. Investigations are ongoing into state branches, financial misconduct and cultural failings. The work is challenging, detailed and essential to restoring integrity in the sector, because all workers deserve unions that represent them honestly and protect them fearlessly, not ones that exploit or intimidate them.

Employers, contractors, unions all have a role to make this industry safe, fair and productive. That is why we have established the national construction industry forum to bring together unions, business and government around one table. We will keep doing the work with law enforcement regulators and people across the country to return construction to what should be—a sector where workers like those in our community can feel safe, respected and supported. That's the standard my community expects, it is the standard I expect and it is the standard this government is committed to delivering.

Helen Haines (Indi, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The time allotted for this debate has expired. The debate is adjourned and the resumption of the debate will be made in order of the day for the next sitting.