SA Election 2022: Labor faces questions over ‘secret plan’ to force union membership

Calls from a Peter Malinauskas staffer for union membership to be supported by government contractors are being seized upon by the Liberals.

Labor is facing questions over a “secret plan” to force businesses to bolster union numbers to win government contracts.

Treasurer Rob Lucas is seizing on a research paper written by a staffer to Opposition Leader Peter Malinauskas, which urges state governments to require government contractors to support union membership.

Mr Lucas is questioning what understandings have been reached between construction unions and Mr Malinauskas about policy changes and whether there is a “secret plan”.

Mr Malinauskas, whose office rejected any plan to force union membership to win government contracts, on Tuesday released a government procurement policy designed to divert spending on goods and services to South Australian suppliers.

Mr Lucas quoted an excerpt from a December, 2021, John Curtin Research Centre paper, co-written by Mr Malinauskas’s staffer Lawrence Ben, which highlights New Jersey’s Governor stating “when projects receive taxpayer funds they should be ‘built and operated by union hands’”.

“Imagine being the best organisation to deliver the best outcome for taxpayers and possibly missing out on the work simply because your workers had not joined a union,” Mr Lucas said.

“Given the massive support for the former union boss Mr Malinauskas from other union bosses such as the CFMEU and others, the obvious questions are what understandings have been reached between these union bosses and Mr Malinauskas about policy changes.”

Outgoing Treasurer Rob Lucas, who will retire at the March 19 state election. Picture: Brenton Edwards

The paper by Mr Ben, whose partner is the daughter of Labor Senator Don Farrell, suggests state governments “should introduce legislation which requires all substantial public procurement contracts to include a set of labour conditions requiring the contractor to … support union membership”.

An Opposition spokesman said: “Rob Lucas’s conspiracy theories are becoming increasingly desperate.”

Asked whether Labor’s procurement policy released on Tuesday would in any way lead to encouraging or promoting union membership, the spokesman said: “No.” He said Mr Ben was a junior staffer.

Opposition Leader Peter Malinauskas on Wednesday announced a new hospital at Mt Barker. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Brenton Edwards

The Labor procurement policy released on Tuesday proposes at least 5 per cent of all state government spending would be redirected to South Australian suppliers and almost all work on major infrastructure projects would be done by locals, pumping an extra $425m annually into the state economy.

The Labor plan includes:

ENFORCING a 90 per cent labour hour minimum by SA workers on major infrastructure projects.

DEMANDING a minimum 20 per cent of these labour hours be performed by trainees, Aboriginal workers and long-term unemployed.

UNIFORMS required to be SA-made, where possible, for government agencies.

PUBLIC housing to use SA-manufactured products, where possible.