One of Australia’s biggest and most radical construction workers’ unions is on the defensive after being taken under state administration by the ruling Australian Labour Party (ALP). 270 elected leaders of the CMFEU (Construction, Forestry and Maritime Employees Union) have been removed under this administration, barring union leaders from undertaking any negotiations or accessing union resources and destroying its democratic structures.
The construction arm was forced into immediate administration following a bill which passed through their houses of Parliament in September, justified in coordination with a mass media campaign accusing the union of links to organised crime and the corruption of its National Secretary, Zach Smith. However, no formal investigation by state bodies was carried out before the takeover, and none are ongoing.
“[The] Leadership was the best the union had, and that scared them,” said one exiled elected delegate at a union campaign event organised by the Communist Party of Australia (CPA) – New South Wales, this November.
When the union expanded into civil/public construction projects, it fought for workers to get a fairer cut of the millions in profits accrued through public-private construction contracts, which some argued is the real reason for the take-over. Since administration, Queensland’s government suspended a Best Practice Industry Conditions agreement for construction workers on new major government projects, fuelling accusations of the ALP’s true intent.
In combination with corruption accusations against unionised construction workers, the ALP have vowed to “stop the rot”, claiming unions bargaining for better pay and safer working conditions is inflating the costs of housing and state projects.
A gagging order has been imposed on fellow Australian unions, with workers threatened with sacking from their respective unions if they speak up about or support the CMFEU’s demands to reinstate their democratic procedures and structures. CMFEU members have been unable to print their own leaflets, order flags or even fund their upcoming High Court challenge on 10th/11th December 2024. They are instead relying on the support of other activists, the CPA, and volunteer campaigners.
“A lot of working people didn’t realise the Labour party was their enemy: they do now,” said one CPA speaker.
There were serious concerns aired about the precedent this takeover would set, not just for the next rotation of liberal governments (their more conservative ruling party) but also for trade union organising the world over.
However, campaigners at the Sydney event stayed optimistic: “Is this the end of the CMFEU? No, it’s only the fucking beginning!”
