TRANSCRIPT
“I believe the ayes have it."
After more than a month in the courts and a week in Parliament, there is now a clear path to putting the construction and general division of the CFMEU into administration.
Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations Murray Watt is claiming it as a win for people across Australia.
"I think all Australians, including construction workers, have been very disturbed by the allegations we've seen of late of organised crime and bikies infiltrating the construction division of the CFMEU and the wider construction industry. The passage of this legislation means that the days of organized crime and bikie influence in the CFMEU construction division and the wider industry are coming to an end."
The final deal struck between the two major parties will see the administration period run for a minimum rather than a maximum of three years.
The Fair Work Commission is to report to Senate Estimates, and the union will be blocked from making political donations - a priority for opposition workplace relationships spokeswoman Michaelia Cash.
"To ensure that the CFMEU in administration is not to incur any form of political campaign expenditure or make party political donations."
The decision of who will become administrator is up to the Fair Work Commission, but the government expects they will choose to appoint Mark Irving, who was nominated by the Fair Work Commission whilst trying to move the union into administration through the courts.
The Greens voted against the bill, which leader Adam Bandt believes is hasty legislation.
"This is what happens when you rush serious legislation like this. There are processes underway before a court. There is no tolerance for sexism, for violence, for corruption. All of those things have no place in any workplace or in any organisation, whether it's a corporation or a union or a government. But what Labor and the anti-worker Liberals have done is rushed through legislation that is an unprecedented attack on the rule of law."
Distinguished Professor Anthony Forsyth is from the RMIT Graduate School of Business and Law.
He says the changes are significant, but justified.
"It's not something that should be done lightly. And there are even international law principles about independence and absence of state interference with trade unions that possibly are being breached here. But there does become a question of necessity, and when a union ceases to be run primarily in the interests of the members, which it seems is what has happened here."
Professor Forsyth says for workers on the ground, the biggest change will be who is representing them.
"Up to around 270 officials of the national union and state branches, their positions will be vacated, so members will notice a change in terms of the absence of that leadership. And it may also extend down to organisers who are employed officials of the union being replaced by others, because that's going to be a power of the administrator as well, and also delegates. So the workplace site representatives of unions on construction sites, members may see changes in who is turning up to represent them."
Although he notes that loss of experience could have consequences.
"With the removal of so many officials and delegates, there will be a consequential loss of some of the industrial skills and knowledge and what those people bring to negotiations. Much is going to depend on who the administrator can identify internally to step up and replace those whose positions are vacated."
Professor Forsyth says it may be challenging to find people to fill the positions.
"The objective of the administration is to take the union from one that's not functioning currently, primarily, effectively in the interests of the members, into one that can do that in a corrupt-free, crime-free state over the five-year period. But that is a significant challenge, because it really requires identifying the next group of leaders who can come forward and in a lot of ways have the bravery to come forward and be that future leadership of the union."
The union will still be able to appeal through the courts - something Mr Watt says the government has anticipated.
"I think anyone who knows the record of the CFMEU will recognise that they are very likely to try to find ways to legally challenge this. We have drafted this legislation in such a way to withstand as much legal challenge as we possibly can, but it wouldn't surprise me in the least if we see the CFMEU running off to court, as they often seem to do."
The government hopes the process will be finalised by the end of the month.
