AWU ‘needs to take blame for officials’ behaviour’

The royal commissioner should reject defences to corruption claims by the AWU, lawyers for the inquiry say.

Royal commissioner Dyson ­Heydon should reject defences to corruption claims by the Australian Workers Union and former officials in his final report on trade union corruption later this month, lawyers for the inquiry have argued.

Jeremy Stoljar SC and counsel assisting the inquiry pressed their case that former Victorian AWU secretary Cesar Melhem was “dishonest” and possibly guilty of criminal offences, in final submissions on the AWU published by the inquiry last night.

Counsel also branded ­“absurd” a submission from former national secretary Paul Howes last month which ­accused the inquiry of a “gross misuse of power” for querying his role in a 2010 deal between the AWU and Cleanevent that left cleaners with below-award wages.

“Paul Howes must be suggesting that his subordinate should take all responsibility and him none,” the submissions said. “To suggest ... there has been some breach of natural justice, not to mention a ‘gross misuse of power’, is absurd and, more importantly, directly contrary to authority.”

The commission came under fire when it released its submissions-in-chief on the AWU — which found national secretary Bill Shorten did not personally commit an offence — late on a Friday night last month.

The submissions argued Mr Melhem issued false invoices for payments in “side deals” accompanying workplace agreements from companies including Cleanevent, the Thiess John Holland construction joint venture, and Downer EDI engineering firm.

In his submission in reply last month Mr Shorten rejected any blame for the discredited Cleanevent workplace agreement, saying he “relied on” briefings from union organisers.

Counsel assisting the commission did not respond to Mr Shorten’s submission but noted last night that: “Bill Shorten made it quite clear in his evidence that he had nothing to do with the issuing of any of the Thiess John Holland or ACI invoices.’’

The submissions alleged that the AWU bore responsibility for the actions of officials such as Mr Melhem, now an MP in the Victorian parliament, saying the union should accept some blame for the side deals done with Cleanevent, ACI, and Thiess John Holland.

“There is a strong foundation for a conclusion that the AWU did compromise its position in ­relation to the MOU in exchange for the side payment from Cleanevent. That fact illustrates that this risk was present whenever the AWU accepted a side payment in circumstances in which an EBA was negotiated,” the submissions said. “The AWU now seeks to ­ignore the reality of how it operated and to hide behind rules that were never followed.’’

The submissions observed that Mr Melhem and former ­organiser John-Paul Blandthorn, now an adviser to Victorian Premier Daniel ­Andrews, seek to cast blame on each other for the Cleanevent deal.