One of Australia's biggest unions — the Construction, Forestry and Maritime Employees Union (CFMEU) — has been thrust into the spotlight over allegations of corruption and links to organised crime figures.
A Nine Network investigation forced the union's controversial leader over the "false accusations" and "malicious attacks", after 12 years at the helm of the Victorian branch.
The saga has cast questions of corruption across the industry and threatens the working agreements of thousands of Australians.
Former Victorian branch boss John Setka quit last week. He has been part of the union for over four decades. Source: AAP / James Ross
What is the CFMEU?
The CFMEU is a union for employees connected to the construction, manufacturing, timber, textile, clothing and footwear industries.
It advocates for the fair wages and working conditions of more than 140,000 members nationwide, including 30,000 across Victoria and Tasmania.
What are the allegations?
Nine published a series of damning newspaper and television reports following a months-long investigation into criminal links in the construction division of the CFMEU.
The reports alleged bikies and criminals are acting as CFMEU delegates and are being awarded high-paying government-funded projects, including Victoria's $100 billion 'Big Build' infrastructure pipeline.
Allegations included the placement of criminal figures in influential union posts, potential kickback schemes to CFMEU members, and evidence of correspondence between Setka and underworld figure Mick Gatto.
What has the CFMEU said?
National secretary Zach Smith said the CFMEU had "zero tolerance for criminal activity", as the Victorian branch was placed into administration.
He opposed calls for the branch to be deregistered, and warned against leaving workers "vulnerable and without representation, without protection in an industry like ours".
Smith said he didn't know how any potential termination of an enterprise bargaining agreement would work on a practical level.
The CFMEU advocates for the working conditions of its members, negotiating enterprise agreements on their behalf. Source: AAP / James Ross
What else is being said?
Government Services Minister Bill Shorten labelled the allegations a "betrayal of taxpayers" and "a betrayal of the vast bulk of people who belong to unions".
Opposition Treasury spokesperson Angus Taylor has advocated for the union to be deregistered and for the federal government to re-establish the Australian Building and Construction Commission, which it abolished in 2023.
The Business Council of Australia has called for a "full, frank and independent" judicial inquiry, saying the CFMEU should not be allowed to take any government contract before a proper investigation into the allegations.
Federal Opposition employment and workplace relations spokesperson Michaelia Cash said the Labor Party should return any funds donated by the CFMEU after Labor won the 2022 federal election.
"The depth of criminal infiltration, revealed by the Nine newspapers, is extremely disturbing and should be of concern to every Australian," she said.
Jacinta Allan says her response to the allegations was too slow
On Tuesday, Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan said her response was too slow when violence allegations against the CFMEU were raised with her directly.
Allan was sent a letter while transport infrastructure minister in April 2022 by an Indigenous labour-hire firm, claiming the union's officials were threatening violence and blackballing non-preferred firms from state and federally-funded projects, Nine newspapers reported.
Allan, who held the infrastructure portfolio from 2018 to 2023, said her office logged the letter in October 2023, prompting an investigation by the major transport infrastructure authority.
"It's clear that the correspondence was not processed quickly enough," she told reporters on Tuesday.
"But when it was formally lodged ... with both my office and the major transport infrastructure authority, it was acted upon."
In a letter to Victoria Police chief commissioner Shane Patton in May 2023, the premier said she was advised the authority's director-general Kevin Devlin had not uncovered any evidence of "systemic, widespread, or organised criminal activity" on its worksites.
Victoria Police also assessed the allegations and took no action after deeming they did not meet the threshold of criminality, Patton has confirmed.
What happens next?
Industrial Relations Minister Tony Burke called the reports "completely unacceptable" and said he is considering .
The allegations have been referred to Victoria Police and the state's anti-corruption watchdog, with both assessing the matter. A Royal Commission isn't off the table.
Victoria's Labor government has pledged to toughen anti-bikie laws, and has moved to suspend affiliation with the union and ban political donations from them following the allegations.
Allan has called on the federal government to consider terminating enterprise agreements on Victorian construction sites to prevent criminal activity.
