The FWC has chosen a senior barrister to administer the union and wants to give him sweeping powers to follow dirty money and sack officials. The CFMEU says it’s taking legal advice.
A veteran senior barrister with sweeping powers to follow dirty money trails and sack union officials accused of corruption will take over the scandal-plagued construction union if Australia’s union watchdog succeeds in its plan to place the CFMEU into administration.
CFMEU national secretary Zach Smith said the union was seeking legal advice on the application, noting it must still be determined by the Federal Court. In an update to members, he accused the FWC of being “evasive and erratic” in responding to his repeated approaches to Mr Furlong to discuss any concerns about the union’s operation.
Earlier this week, Mr Smith sought to pre-empt the FWC plan to install an independent administrator by announcing the appointment of a union-funded investigator, the widely respected corruption buster Geoffrey Watson, SC. In a statement on Friday, the FWC said it had initiated proceedings in the Federal Court to appoint Mr Irving as an independent administrator “following significant consultation with a wide range of stakeholders representing both employer and employee interests”.
Union leaders Darren Greenfield and Derek Christopher, who have both been the subject of serious, albeit denied, corruption allegations, are backing the rearguard action by Mr Smith to thwart Mr Irving’s appointment.
The FWC statement said Mr Irving would be empowered to ensure the CFMEU’s construction wing branches “function effectively and lawfully” and that he would be able to “remove officers, officials and employees from their positions”.
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