‘Not exceptional’: CFMEU organiser’s tirade reveals all

The construction department at the CFMEU’s Victoria branch was so violent and intimidating that a series of profanity-laced threats captured on video were considered “not exceptional”.

A damning interim report has laid out a raft of damning findings into allegations that the Department of Building and General Affairs was involved in criminal and corrupt conduct, as previously revealed by Nine Newspapers in 2024.

The report, released on Monday, was authored by Geoffrey Watson SC, who was hired in July by CFMEU national secretary Zach Smith to conduct an independent investigation into the allegations.

Mr Watson made seven recommendations, including further investigation to identify instances where officers from the Victoria department have engaged in or been subjected to threatening, violent or abusive behaviour.

One of the incidents captured on video involved a Victoria branch organiser who identified himself as working for the union.

He then threatened two owners of a company that provides labor for indigenous peoples, saying, among other things, “I will take your soul and rip off your head.”

Mr Watson said that when he raised the incident with Victoria union officials, he “got the impression they didn’t see it as out of the ordinary”.

He also said the department must build “cooperative relationships” with Victoria Police, the Australian Federal Police and regulatory authorities “so that criminal conduct can be dealt with in accordance with the law”.

“Based on the information I uncovered during my investigation, the Victoria Department was caught in a cycle of lawlessness, where violence was an accepted part of the culture and the threat of violence was a substitute for reasonable negotiation,” Mr Watson said.

He described in detail the union’s “persistent refusal” to involve the police in the case.

“It almost seemed like the police were viewed as the enemy,” Watson said.

“I was told about specific incidents where union members had been seriously assaulted or threatened with violence or death, but nothing was reported to the police.”

Labor Minister Murray Watt said he was not surprised by the report’s damning findings.

“Even a report conducted by the union itself has shown widespread corruption, widespread infiltration by bikers and widespread violence linked to the CFMEU and the construction sector,” he told reporters.

Mr Watt also noted that the report raises concerns not only about figures within the union, but also about employers and others involved in the construction sector.

A senior official said he could give Mr Watson “1,000 cases where workers have been outvoted and abused”, adding that “all the police do is turn around and go after unions”.

Attempts to get rid of the bikers’ union were insufficient and there was no official investigation.

“I remain unconvinced that the Victorian Branch had any real intention of resolving this issue. Even if it did, more needs to be done to address the issue,” he said.

He recommended further investigation into any remaining links between union representatives and criminal motorcycle gangs and their influence.

Mr Watson said his investigation was hampered by his inability to compel witnesses to give evidence or produce documents, and by his inability to offer potential witnesses confidentiality.

“Halfway through my investigation, I was informed that threats of violence had been made, including against members of the Victoria Department executive team,” he wrote.

“Because of those threats, I was ordered to no longer contact certain third parties.”

Victorian Government Services Minister Gabrielle Williams said the government condemned similar behaviour “in the workplace or anywhere else”.

Deputy Opposition Leader David Southwick said the government had ample opportunity to ban bicycles from construction sites, but the issue would cost taxpayers a lot of money.

ACTU president Michele O’Neil said she had not read the report but supported the executive’s efforts to investigate the issues outside the union.

In August, federal Attorney General Mark Dreyfus placed the CFMEU’s construction arm into receivership and appointed Mark Irving KC as administrator.

Mr Watson said Mr Irving later instructed him to present his report and make recommendations on investigations the administrator should carry out.