Who’s who in the CFMEU

THESE are the union heavies behind major stoppages and disruptions on projects around Queensland, and they have builders in their sights, writes Daryl Passmore.

THESE are the union heavies behind major stoppages and disruptions on projects around the state, and they have builders in their sights, writes Daryl Passmore.

MICHAEL RAVBAR

Michael Ravbar, centre. Pic: AAP Image/Dan Peled

State secretary of the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union and the most powerful man in Queensland politics today.

Gary Bullock from the United Voice union formally heads the Labor Party’s Left faction, which holds the most cabinet places in the Palaszczuk Government. But nothing happens without Mr Ravbar’s agreement.

The 49-year-old has risen effortlessly to fill the vacuum left by the retirement of long-time Australian Workers boss Bill Ludwig as a party powerbroker.

Mr Ravbar’s influence extends well beyond the state border as a member of the ALP’s national executive, and the CFMEU’s support was critical to Opposition Leader Bill Shorten securing the party leadership.

Last year’s Heydon Royal Commission into Trade Union Governance and Corruption found that Mr Ravbar ordered the destruction of thousands of documents after an order to produce them as evidence.

But Commissioner Dyson Heydon QC did not make findings of possible criminal conduct against Mr Ravbar, who denied the allegations, because a police investigation was already under way.

That continues, with the Federal Court ruling in June that Australian Federal Police had authority to examine his computer hard drive although the union is still fighting to stop it.

Mr Ravbar is currently fighting a bid by the Fair Work Building Industry ­Inspectorate for revocation of his right-of-entry permit to worksites.

But he can close down the centre of Brisbane with hundreds of protesting unionists by simply picking up the phone.

JADE INGHAM

Jade Ingham.

Mr Ravbar’s right-hand man, assistant state secretary Jade Ingham, was one of three officials fined in July, along with the union itself, for illegal industrial action which stopped at the $105 million Brooklyn on Brooks apartment project in Fortitude Valley for six days in 2014. Federal Court Judge Michael Jarrett said it was “a conspicuous public display of public disobedience’’ and the CFMEU was “treating this country’s industrial laws as little more than an annoyance’’.

And next month, Mr Ingham and four other CFMEU officials will face the Federal Court accused of disrupting the $200 million 180 Brisbane office tower project in 2014.

He told a recent union rally: “We just like a f---ing blue.”

SCOTT VINK

Scott Vink.

Gold Coast-based union enforcer Scott Vink led three weeks of four-hours-a-day stop-work meetings at the $123 million Commonwealth Games sports complex in Carrara this year, costing $700,000, to try to pressure contractor Hansen Yuncken to sign a new enterprise agreement.

In March, he was slapped with a $9000 penalty – and the CFMEU fined $48,000 – for an incident at the Pacific Fair shopping centre expansion in Broadbeach when he intimidated non-union workers in what Federal Court Judge Salvatore Vasta called “sheer thuggery”.

His site entry permit has been removed.

MICHAEL (MICK) MYLES

Mick Myles

Union organiser Mick Myles is before the courts in four cases of alleged unlawful industrial action or coercion.

The latest involves leading 60 workers off an RNA Showgrounds site, forcing the cancellation of a concrete pour over the use of a tiling firm without CFMEU approval.

In April, he was fined $7000 and the CFMEU $45,000 by the Federal Circuit Court for instigating unlawful industrial action at a $60 million QUT Kelvin Grove project in 2014, which involved a demand for CFMEU flags to be flown from a crane.

ANDREW SUTHERLAND

Assistant state secretary Andrew Sutherland is accused, along with Mr Ingham, in relation to the 180 Brisbane site action.

Andrew Sullivan.

JUSTIN STEELE

One of seven unionists subject to a Federal Court restraining order issued two weeks ago to prevent stoppages or disruptions after nine Hutchinson building projects, worth more than $1 billion, were targeted a total of 15 times in a month.

This week, he was named in new Fair Work Building and Construction action after six of contractor Watpac’s Brisbane worksites were shut down for two days following the engagement of a subcontractor without a union agreement.

Justin Steele.

EDWARD BLAND

Another accused in the Hutchies and Watpac cases. His entry permit has been withdrawn.

Eddie Bland.

MICHAEL DAVIS

Mike Davis.

Another on the no-permit list, Mike Davis was fined $20,000 last year for his involvement in disrupting work at a housing project for homeless people in Brisbane in an attempt to coerce contractor Grocon to sign an enterprise agreement.

Penalties totalling $545,000 were imposed on the union and five officials.

He is also involved in the Hutchies case.