The Federal Court has reduced fines against the CFMEU for calling a building manager a “pumpkin eater” after finding the slur was not homophobic but has still insisted on a more than $100,000 penalty to deter the union’s churlish behaviour.

Justice Wendy Abraham on Thursday granted the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union’s appeal of a $151,000 penalty in response to its officials’ “disgusting” homophobic slurs and abuse on Queensland’s $5.4 billion Cross River Rail project and imposed fines of $114,000 instead.