Labour disputes continue to grow

The building industry watchdog has fielded 859 ‘requests for assistance’ flowing from disputes since June.

The building industry watchdog has revealed that it fielded 859 ­“requests for assistance” flowing from disputes on construction sites in the past three months, as Labor leader Bill Shorten declared yesterday he had “zero tolerance” for crimes by union officials.

The agency had launched 54 investigations since sending the annual report to the government in June and initiated another seven court cases since July 1, the Fair Work Building Inspectorate director Nigel Hadgkiss said ­yesterday.

Mr Hadgkiss has also referred a another nine briefs of evidence to lawyers, with most of the cases against union officials, and ­described the updated figures as “disappointing”.

As reported in The Australian yesterday, Fair Work Building and Construction investigated 948 ­instances in the year to June where workplace laws had been broken.

The breaches were committed overwhelmingly by officials from the Construction Forestry Mining and Energy Union.

The government yesterday used the Fair Work report to ­attack Labor’s “support” for the CFMEU. “Within the construction industry there is still a culture of fear, there is still a culture of ­intimidation,” Employment Minister Michaelia Cash said.

“The statistics from the independent regulator … show that in the last year alone, there have been 1000 breaches of various types of laws by the CFMEU on construction sites around Australia.

“Labor has come out today and has downplayed, this … they are quite happy to support lawlessness within the construction sector.

Senator Cash also used the ­report to bolster the government’s case for introducing measures to rein in the CFMEU, including ­restoring the more powerful regulator, the Australian Building and Construction Commission.

“I’d say to Brendan O’Connor and Bill Shorten … there is a bill, we can bring it back next week,’’ she said. “It will restore the Australian Building and Construction Commission … that will ensure there is a tough cop on the street and the headlines that we see today that are based on fact, coming out of the annual report, will no longer be seen.

“They like to talk but judge them by their actions because their actions quite frankly speak louder than their words.”

Senator Cash also heaped scrutiny on Mr Shorten for his role in a side deal struck when he was head of the Australian Workers Union with the construction joint venture Thiess John Holland.

“This is the same Bill Shorten who relies on the CFMEU for support and the same Bill Shorten who takes his orders from the CFMEU,” Senator Cash said.

Mr Shorten yesterday said his party had “zero tolerance” for criminality. “We also want to make sure that these breaches are being clamped on now so we’ll look at the report,” he added.

“We have no tolerance for criminal behaviour. It doesn’t matter if you are a union, a union rep, a worker or an investment banker or director of a large company, we should have the same rules should apply to everyone in this country,” Mr Shorten said.

CFMEU construction national secretary Dave Noonan yesterday branded the report “partisan”.