August
Labor denies Setka’s claim of secret deal not to take over CFMEU
The union’s former boss said the ALP betrayed a deal that it would not appoint an administrator in return for his resignation amid claims of bikie infiltration.
- Updated
- David Marin-Guzman
July
- Opinion
- Building Bad
How to burst the CFMEU’s balloon for good
Press the construction union, and it simply bulges up somewhere else. More tools are needed if the union’s long-term culture is to change.
- Peter Richards
- Opinion
- Building Bad
Albanese is responsible for the monster that is the CFMEU
A friendly political environment created by the Labor government allows the lawless union to thrive.
- Aaron Patrick
- Analysis
- Building Bad
Lendlease’s convenient, lucrative alliance with the CFMEU
Allegations of wrongdoing on construction sites raise the question: Do big contractors enable and profit from union thuggery?
- Aaron Patrick
Bikie delegates axed as CFMEU scrambles to fight back
Sources say the Labor government is struggling to find someone willing to take on external administration of the CFMEU, a move it is desperately trying to fend off.
- David Marin-Guzman, Gus McCubbing and Phillip Coorey
- Opinion
- Building Bad
On CFMEU, Albo must emulate Hawke
The union must be deregistered, and government construction contracts must once again be used to ensure that unacceptable union behaviour is not tolerated.
- Roger Gyles
The ties that bind John Setka to Cbus and the ALP
With the CFMEU now in a spotlight so bright even the indestructible John Setka couldn’t ride it out, ties like these drag everyone else into the glare.
- Myriam Robin
‘Integrity, credibility’: CFMEU praises Setka, rejects outside inquiry
The union does not believe any construction deal with the government was achieved through corruption, but is terminating a contract with one company.
- Updated
- Gus McCubbing, Hannah Wootton and Lucy Slade
June 2023
Mining union members back divorce from CFMEU
The mining union’s overwhelmingly successful ballot to form their own independent union means the CFMEU could lose $102 million of assets.
- Updated
- David Marin-Guzman
March 2022
CFMEU faces second split in civil war fallout
The CFMEU’s manufacturing division has decided to take steps to leave the rest of the union, citing dysfunction and internal attacks.
- David Marin-Guzman
September 2021
- Opinion
- Coronavirus pandemic
Melbourne reaps fallout from an unhappy record
Construction industry workers are angry at union leadership and tough COVID-19 restrictions, but John Setka’s excuses about protests being hijacked by anti-vaxxers ring hollow.
- Jennifer Hewett
Mining union blocked from splitting from CFMEU
The much-anticipated CFMEU break-up has been thrown into disarray by a tribunal finding parts of the demerger laws don’t apply to the union they were meant for.
- David Marin-Guzman
January 2021
- Exclusive
- CFMEU
CFMEU contender 'crashed' into elderly woman's living room
A John Setka-backed challenger to union leader Michael O'Connor allegedly drove his union car through a Melbourne home, then fled the scene.
- David Marin-Guzman
December 2020
- Analysis
- Industrial relations
CFMEU 'super union' risks losing its super powers
The prospect of the CFMEU splitting in half, inconceivable two years ago, would leave a massive hole in the union's political armoury.
- David Marin-Guzman
- Opinion
- Industrial relations
Unlikely double act to take on Setka
Attorney-General Christian Porter and unionist Tony Maher are working to curb the influence of John Setka, giving some extra colour to the government's modest workplace reform package.
- Updated
- Jennifer Hewett
November 2020
Mining union splits from CFMEU
The CFMEU's mining division has withdrawn from the national arm of the union, saying it has become "impossibly divided" and accusing the powerful construction union of bullying.
- David Marin-Guzman
CFMEU leaderless as resignation fuels dysfunction
The CFMEU risks falling into a leaderless vacuum as its national secretary's resignation sees the powerful mining division reconsider its future with the union.
- David Marin-Guzman
CFMEU chief resigns amid Setka fallout
Powerful CFMEU head Michael O'Connor has stepped down after complaining the union is now 'totally dysfunctional' and ruined by 'irreconcilable differences'.
- David Marin-Guzman
June 2020
At the table but still a long way from a deal
Unions, employers and the Coalition are setting out to achieve landmark reform in an area once deemed untouchable but ideological divides run deep.
- David Marin-Guzman
April 2020
- Analysis
- Coronavirus pandemic
Does Daniel Andrews deserve his record popularity?
The Victorian Premier's popularity has never been higher but questions remain over his more interventionist approach and the lasting debt post COVID-19.
- Patrick Durkin