Police accused of signing secret agreement with CFMEU
A man whose report triggered a CFMEU inquiry claims the embattled union had a secret deal preventing police from intervening in industrial disputes.
Police are accused of signing a secret “memorandum of understanding” with the CFMEU to stay out of an industrial turf war.
The author of a damning report into Queensland’s CFMEU made the extraordinary allegation on Wednesday, saying state police agreed not to intervene in industrial disputes.
Barrister Geoffrey Watson told an inquiry he was shocked to discover the Queensland Police Association had signed the alleged deal, ensuring officers stayed out of the CFMEU’s escalating battle with hated rival Australian Workers Union.
“The memorandum of understanding – that I saw – which was in effect to mean that they (the police) had no jurisdiction once it became an industrial dispute,” Watson said on day two of an inquiry into Queensland’s CFMEU and misconduct in the construction industry.
“It was almost as if the police would stop at the boundary (of an industrial dispute) … I thought that the criminal law was across, up and down, and everywhere in Australia.”
The inquiry heard of multiple instances – accompanied by video – of CFMEU members verbally and physically harassing AWU delegates at different construction sites, sometimes in full public view.
In one video a brawl spills from in front of a worksite onto the street, stopping traffic with police nowhere to be seen.
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Watson’s claims were later dismissed as “offensive” by the Queensland Police Union.
“Police put their lives on the line every day and they are proud of their ethics,” union president Shane Prior said in a statement.
“Mr Watson is wrong to suggest the QPU has signed any agreement with the CFMEU.
“I find it offensive and outrageous any insinuation suggesting police … would not act where required by law and jeopardise their own integrity.”
Watson alleged the CFMEU’s bullying of AWU members was designed to create a monopoly and gain total control of the construction industry at a time of labour shortages.
He said such a monopoly would put in jeopardy the completion of major construction projects, including for Brisbane 2032 venues and the proposed Macquarie Point AFL stadium in Hobart.
“My joke is this – if they ever start building that stadium in Hobart, the politicians are going to have to get out the hammers and nails themselves,” Watson said.
“All the labour will be scattered. There won’t be anyone left to do it.”
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The CFMEU’s Queensland branch took its cues from former union boss John Setka in Victoria in its attempts to drive out the AWU from work sites.
“If you knock out the AWU, you know what you’re knocking out? The competition,” Watson said.
“You can imagine what the cost of labour would be in Queensland if there was no competition to the CFMEU.”
The intimidation extended to threats against AWU family members, with one member being told “we know you have two young sons”.
His bins were later plastered with CFMEU and anti-AWU stickers – an indication the CFMEU knew where he lived.
In another incident, CFMEU organiser Blake Hynes is said to have threatened an AWU organiser, saying “you don’t even know who I run with”, rolling up his sleeve to show a tattoo.
Watson said he heard from multiple sources Hynes was a Bandidos bikie gang member.
Hynes denied knowledge of the incident or of being a gang member.
Watson said there was evidence the CFMEU’s campaign was already working, with construction firms steering clear of Brisbane.
“You look at the building sites here and you’ll see a limited number of companies engaged in construction work,” he said.
“Other big-name builders could see what was happening, and they’ve been burnt in Victoria … and they have avoided the Brisbane CBD market because of it.”
The consequences were obvious.
“It’s like any market. If there’s no competition, you’re going to get higher prices,” he said.
The Queensland government triggered the inquiry into misconduct in the state’s construction industry after Watson’s CFMEU branch report exposed a culture of violence, intimidation and misogyny in the union.
