Gaoling unionists back on the agenda, says Ferguson

Legislative attacks on the rights of building workers may spread to other unions, ANDREW FERGUSON told September Council.

There are issues confronting the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) that are part of a broader attack upon trade union rights, living standards and civil liberties.

In the building industry now we're subject to special legislation that doesn't apply to other workplaces or other industries, but inevitably will in future years.

This week [September 10] we had the passage in the Federal Parliament of the Building and Construction Industry Improvement Bill. Misnamed legislation aimed at breaking all forms of union organisation on building sites across this country -- legislation that provides for massive fines, not just against the union and union officials, but also rank and file workers with provision for a prohibition on all forms of union activity, meetings and strikes.

The legislation provides that it is unlawful for workers on building sites to have any meetings about any issues unless the union has the prior written permission of the developer, the builder and every single contractor at that workplace.

We have significant issues in our industry with employers that use gangs of non-English speaking workers as cheap labour, where safety standards are appalling, with massive tax evasion and workers compensation fraud by contractors, but no right to express any grievance at a workplace.

Those issues we're now unable to tackle in terms of this legislation, and they have backed it up with massive fines. If the union convenes a workplace meeting without written permission, we face the prospect of a fine of $110,000 for every employer at a workplace where a worker stops work.

On the job across the road from here [Council met at the University of Technology, Ultimo] we have got 30 contractors on that site and 100 workers. If those workers stop work, impacting those 30 companies for a 30 minute meeting about workplace safety, we face the prospect of a fine of $3.3 million, and the workers are also facing the prospect of individual fines of $22,000 per worker for going to a union meeting.

The aim of the Government is to intimidate and bankrupt the union. They have established a special tribunal for the building industry with hand picked right-wing ideologues determined to break the CFMEU and union organisation. That task force has special coercive powers and when they interrogate a worker, a union delegate or a union official at a workplace, there is no right to silence. It has been suspended for all workers in the building trade: no right to silence, no protection from self-incrimination and if you don't answer their questions, you face the prospect of six months imprisonment.

Six months in gaol for refusing to participate in an interrogation session about union activity at a workplace. What delegate gave out what leaflets? What delegate made what recommendation about a union issue? Who stopped work, who voted at a union meeting?

I say to you probably in the next 12 months a number of our union officials will exercise their conscience and refuse to participate in these Gestapo-like interrogation sessions, and we will have the prospect of union officials going to gaol for refusing to participate.

We also have a special code of practice for our industry that regulates what employers are allowed to agree to with the union in enterprise bargaining agreements. They have decided that you are not allowed to have a bargaining agreement with reference to labour hire. You can't require that there be consultation with the union about the extent of labour hire, its use, what rates of pay and what conditions, including any clause in any union enterprise bargaining agreement that deals with labour hire, about union rights about union meetings, the rights of union delegates.

What we are facing is a prospect of an unprecedented attack upon the CFMEU, the building unions, but I can say with a lot of confidence that if they succeed of this agenda they will use the same laws against other workers where there is resistance.

I am confident of our capacity to resist these attacks. It will require a lot of unity in the union movements, a lot of fighting capacity and a lot of focus, but I have seen unjust attacks defeated in the past.

Many of us here remember the laws of Bjelke-Petersen in Queensland, banning street marches and seeking to crush political dissent; unsuccessful because of a determination of people to stand up for civil liberties and democratic rights. Civil disobedience broke those laws and maintained those rights in this country.

More recently we have seen the asbestos victims across Australia stand up. People who appear to be powerless against the multinational that restructured, moved off shore and denied compensation to tens of thousands of victims, existing victims and future victims. I have seen a campaign led by victims that had very solid trade union and community support that won that campaign for compensation.

So I appeal to delegates here to be very determined to meet the challenges ahead. It will require a lot of hard work, courage, passion and civil disobedience but, like you, I am confident of the outcome of building a stronger, more effective and passionate trade union movement for future generations.

Andrew Ferguson is the Secretary of the NSW branch of the CFMEU. This article is based on his speech.

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