The Queensland Government has launched a landmark Commission of Inquiry into the state’s Construction, Forestry and Maritime Employees Union (CFMEU) following the release of the ‘Violence in the Queensland CFMEU’ report.
As part of the report, CFMEU was highlighted as a “campaign of violence” that was allegedly directed by the union’s former secretary Michael Ravbar and assistant secretary Jade Ingham against workers, women, and children.
Earlier last week, Queensland’s Deputy Premier and Minister for Industrial Relations Jarrod Bleijie sought the Labor Party to explain why “they let this systemic violence including the abuse of women and children go unchecked for so long”, as Mining.com.au reported.
“The CFMEU’s militant behaviour must be condemned at every level, and I call on the Labor Party to explain why they allowed this systemic horror to go unchecked for a decade,” he says.
Following the release of the report, the Queensland Government has referred the report to the state’s police service for their consideration.
Premier David Crisafulli says a Commission of Inquiry was necessary to lift the lid on the culture of violence, intimidation, and potential criminality in the CFMEU.
“If this report only scratched the surface we owe it to Queenslanders to get the full picture with a Commission of Inquiry,” Crisafulli says.
“This is the most powerful Inquiry in the State to give a voice to those made powerless by the CFMEU and their Labor protection racket. We are drawing a line in the sand to make sure workers are safe on worksites and productivity can return to construction.”
Attorney General Deb Frecklington adds that a Commission of Inquiry was integral to discovering how violent the CFMEU’s culture had become.
“Queenslanders have a right to know the full extent of what has been allowed to fester inside the CMFEU,” Frecklington says.
The report included 55 people interviewed over a three-month period. The interviewees involved critical witnesses and victims.
The CFMEU is Australia’s main trade union in construction, forestry, maritime, textile, clothing and footwear production, with offices in all capital cities around the country.
Write to Aaliyah Rogan at Mining.com.au
Images: CFMEU
