ABCC: Sham makeover

The CFMEU rejected moves by the new head of the Australian Building and Construction Commission to recast the public image of the organisation.

New commissioner Lee Johns told Senate Estimates that the ABCC will now prosecute employers who engage in sham contracting and other illegal practices.

"This back flip by the ABCC comes after widespread criticism of the agency’s ongoing bias against construction workers and their unions,” CFMEU Construction national secretary Dave Noonan said today.

"The ABCC has failed to prosecute even one employer for underpaying workers or ripping off workers entitlements since it was established in 2005, despite widespread rorting by employers in the construction industry.

"This attempt to give the ABCC an extreme make-over does not change the fact that the construction industry laws enacted by John Howard remain unacceptable and un-Australian.

"Adelaide construction worker Ark Tribe is still facing prosecution and possible imprisonment for standing up for safety on a worksite.

"Until the Labor Government honours its pre-2007 election promise to abolish the ABCC and end discrimination against construction workers, construction workers will continue their campaign for equality before the law."