‘Aggressive’: union accused of disrupting major project
Queensland’s largest public transport project was at the center of a rogue union’s “aggressive, destructive and misleading” industrial campaign, a commission of inquiry has heard.
A leading construction company says disruption from the CFMEU has eliminated around 55 per cent of efficiency on key parts of Cross River Rail in Brisbane, adding about $580 million to its costs, according to internal estimates.
Senior counsel assisting Eddy Gisonda said Cross River Rail had been subjected to a sustained campaign by the CFMEU designed to inflict reputational and other damage on the project and key personnel.
The investigation into alleged past wrongdoing by Queensland’s construction union resumed on Tuesday amid turmoil following the resignation of CFMEU executive Mark Irving KC.
The commission shifted its focus to Cross River Rail on Tuesday and called CPB Contractors managing director Vince Sanfilippo, who oversees the construction company’s Queensland and Papua New Guinea operations.
Mr Sanfilippo said CPB’s main union stakeholder in Queensland had long been the Australian Workers Union and the company had not had a close working relationship with the CFMEU for more than a decade.
Relations became “particularly difficult” when work began on the Cross River Rail, with negotiations involving the AWU on the one hand and the Construction Trade Group (BTG), including the CFMEU, on the other.
In the investigation, “bullish, quite aggressive” behavior, loud voices and withdrawals from the meeting were noted in the meetings led by CFMEU official Jade Ingham.
BTG pressed for a single project-wide corporate agreement covering all works, including tunneling, and for all subcontractors to be subject to these conditions.
CPB believed the concession would have “significant cost and productivity impacts” and could jeopardize compliance with Commonwealth-funded work in violation of federal construction code.
The union also appeared to seek “some level of input or control” over the appointment of subcontractors.
To end the stalemate before the financial close on June 30, the Cross River Rail Delivery Authority moved negotiations to what it called “neutral ground” and proposed a standing advisory committee to oversee information on subcontractors and upcoming work.
Mr Sanfilippo said the regulation was “unusual” and gave unions “early information and opportunity” to pressure subcontractors or influence which firms are selected.
He also expressed surprise at the level of involvement of the delivery authority and the then Labor government, which had a representative in the negotiations.
The inquiry also heard that CPB had written to the authority about the government’s efforts to comply with best practice guidelines, but was told its letter “did not meet the government’s expectations”.
Instead the CPB was offered a “recommended alternative” version, more in line with the union’s demands, emailed from the private Hotmail account of the authority’s director, Matthew Martyn-Jones.
Mr Sanfilippo said both the contents and use of the private email account were disturbing, telling the inquiry that the Hotmail delivery had “piqued our interest” and prompting him to tell colleagues: “This doesn’t feel right.”
Senior Labor MP Grace Grace will also be represented at the inquiry after being given permission to attend the hearing.
The MP denied allegations that, as industrial relations minister, he threatened to terminate the contract for the $1.6 billion Toowoomba bypass project in 2018 if the developer did not work with the union.
