Teachers union backs takeover of CFMEU

The Australian Education Union says there is no place in the union movement for violence, intimidation, corruption or criminal activity.

Australian Education Union federal president Correna Haythorpe has backed laws forcing the CFMEU construction division into administration. Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman

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The national leader of the 190,000-member teachers union has backed the CFMEU construction division being forced into administration, declaring there was no place in the union movement for violence, intimidation, corruption or criminal activity.

Australian Education Union federal president Correna Haythorpe told The Australian that the vast majority of unions backed the ACTU decision to support Albanese government legislation putting the CFMEU construction division into administration

“We think that the priority needs to be on a strong union movement that has that collective voice for workers and that all members have the right to be represented by unions which are ­ethical,” she said.

“We don’t believe there is any place in our movement for violence and intimidation or corruption or criminal activity, and where there are allegations of such it needs to be resolved. That’s not union business.“

Ms Haythorpe said the AEU was “very concerned” about the allegations against the CFMEU. “They don’t reflect our membership, they don’t reflect who we are in terms of the AEU. They don’t reflect the way that we conduct our business,” she said.

Building industry unions in Victoria have called a mass meeting of 700 delegates for Moonee Valley Racecourse in Melbourne on Thursday to vent their anger at the government and the ACTU over the CFMEU administration.

Officials said they expected the delegates to endorse a protest rally in Melbourne for next week, with simultaneous rallies being discussed for Sydney and Brisbane. The rallies follow 60,000 construction workers staging capital city protests two weeks ago.

In the wake of the Communi­cations Electrical and Plumbing Union splitting from the ACTU last week, officials also revealed 12 state secretaries from four unions had committed to attend a summit of blue-collar unions to discuss setting up a rival union bloc.

Ms Haythorpe said she personally believed the opposition expressed by blue-collar unions to the CFMEU administration was a “minority view”.

“I think the vast majority of ­unions are sticking with the ACTU and support the position of the ACTU executive and its leadership,” she said. “That’s the reality on the ground.”

Ms Haythorpe said about 80 per cent of AEU membership were women and “what we have seen play out publicly with respect to the CFMEU and the allegations of criminal behaviour and so on is not how our members wish to be represented as unionists”.

“We are committed to a strong, united trade union movement that supports its peak body, which is the ACTU, and that works collectively towards a better society for its members,” she said.

“That’s very important to our union and the reality on the ground is that our members in preschools, schools and TAFE are fighting every day for better conditions and better learning environments for their students. That’s their main priority and they really see this as a distraction from that purpose.”

She said the AEU believed in the right of all union members to be represented by strong, respected unions “which uphold a standard of behaviour which reflects the expectations of broader ­society”

She said the AEU was “very proud” to stand with the ACTU, particularly its president Michele O’Neil and its secretary Sally McManus “because they are two incredibly strong women who epitomise the courage and the strength and tenacity of our union movement, and they represent the modern trade unionist who is more likely to be a woman”.