CPA - The Guardian

The CFMEU Construction and General Division have pledged to fight fresh charges laid by the Australian Building Construction Commission (ABCC) against South Australian construction worker, Ark Tribe.

At a meeting of the union’s executive in Sydney, all branches closed ranks around Mr Tribe, who allegedly failed to attend a compulsory interrogation by the ABCC in 2008.

Under the federal government industrial relations laws, construction workers like Mr Tribe can be fined up to $22,000 each for stopping work or jailed for up to 6 months for refusing to answer questions about a union meeting.

CFMEU Construction Division national secretary, Dave Noonan, said the union would fight the charges and the IR laws that singled out construction workers for harsh treatment.

“… The CFMEU has pledged to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Mr Tribe in the fight against these charges and the offensive IR laws that single construction workers out for harsh treatment,” Mr Noonan said.

“We will enlist the support of the ACTU and the Australian trade union movement in this fight and intensify our public campaign against the Australian Building and Construction Commission.”

Mr Noonan also condemned the Rudd government for its failure to repeal the laws that underpin the power of the ABCC.

“It is also a shameful reflection on this Labor government that an ordinary construction worker now faces the possibility of 6 months imprisonment because the government has not removed the most extreme laws left behind by John Howard,” Mr Noonan said.

“We condemn the ongoing political role being played by the ABCC and will continue to campaign for its complete abolition. We will not accept a re-badged version of the ABCC under the ‘Fair Work’ system.”

As The Guardian goes to press, Ark Tribe is due to appear in the Magistrates Court in the Adelaide suburb of Elizabeth. Local unions have been gathering support for Ark and called on members to attend the hearing on Tuesday June 9 at 9am.

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