Office of the Australian Building and Construction Commissioner

Allegations contained in the Statement of Claim

• In 2008, Abigroup Contractors Pty Ltd (Abigroup) was engaged to carry out road building work on the Geelong Project, the Southern Link Project and the Monash Project.
• The Geelong Project had four compounds which were used as a base for employees; one at Geelong 1 and three at Geelong 3 - Barrabool, Pigdon and De Goldis.
• On the Southern Link Project, the compounds were Loys Paddock and Glenferrie.
• Compounds for the Monash Project were on High Street and Auburn Road.

The Redundancy Dispute

• On 14 and 15 May 2008, Abigroup told 13 of its employees on the Geelong Project that their positions were being made redundant.
• On 15 May 2008, CFMEU organisers Maurie Hill and Michael Powell demanded that Abigroup employ the redundant employees on the Monash Project.
• On 16 May 2008, Mr Powell met with employees on the Southern Link Project at Loys Paddock. He later told an Abigroup project manager that the employees had voted not to work in support of the employees who had been made redundant. He gave the project manager a list of the redundant employees who the CFMEU wanted Abigroup to employ on the Monash or Southern Link projects.
• On 16 May 2008, Mr Hill told the Geelong 1 project manager that the Geelong 1 employees would sit in the site sheds and wanted a resolution about getting the redundant employees employed on the Monash or Southern Link projects.

The Round Dispute

• Abigroup employed Paul Round as the Occupational Health and Safety representative on the Geelong Project. In mid May, Mr Round was also acting as the CFMEU representative on Geelong 3.
• On 15 May 2008, Mr Hill and Mr Powell told a project manager they wanted representation on the Monash Project and Mr Round would be suitable for that role.

16 May 2008 Industrial action

• At 6.40am, Mr Powell entered the Loys Paddock site and told an Abigroup foreman he was taking industrial action over the redundancy dispute and wanted to meet with the employees at 7am.
• The Southern Link employees based at Glenferrie met with CFMEU organiser Alex Tadic at 6.45am and went to a meeting conducted by Mr Powell at Loys Paddock at 7am instead of commencing work.
• The Southern Link employees based at Loys Paddock met with Mr Powell shortly before 7am and failed to report for work. At 7.30am, Mr Powell told an Abigroup project manager that the employees voted not to work in support of the redundant employees and that the CFMEU wanted a satisfactory resolution.
• At 9am, CFMEU organiser Ralph Edwards phoned an Abigroup manager and urged him to convince Abigroup to employ the redundant employees. At 9.30am, Mr Edwards told Mr Powell that Abigroup would not agree to employ the redundant employees.
• At 9.30am, Mr Powell and Mr Tadic asked the Abigroup project manager if he had any information regarding their demands. At 10am, Mr Powell and Mr Tadic called another meeting of the Southern Link employees.
• At 10.30am Mr Powell and Mr Tadic told the project manager that the Southern Link employees were refusing to work and there would be no work after 11am if a ‘satisfactory outcome’ could not be reached.
• The Southern Link employees withdrew their labour following a meeting at 11am.
• The Geelong 1 employees met with Mr Hill and failed to start work at the scheduled time of 7am. They remained in the sheds until 11.30am when they went home.

28 May 2008 Industrial Action

Geelong Project

• At 6am CFMEU organiser Shaun Reardon parked his car to impede access to Geelong 1’s main gate and told an Abigroup foreman that he was meeting with the employees at 6.30am and they were ‘shutting down the job’. Mr Reardon met with the employees at 6.30am.
• Mr Reardon met the employees again at 10.40am and left the site at 11am.
• At 6am Mr Hill arrived at Geelong 3 and parked his car to block access to Barrabool’s main entrance. He told a co-ordinator and foreman that it was a CFMEU lock out and that they were blocking Barrabool and had blocked De Goldis and Pigdon.
• At 6.45am Mr Hill refused a request from Abigroup management to move his car.
• At 7.10am, Mr Hill told an Abigroup project manager that there was a picket line and that it was going to stay until the Redundancy Dispute was resolved. He refused requests to allow employees to enter the site.
• Mr Hill conducted a meeting with employees at 7.25am and left the site at 11am.
• At 6am, CFMEU organiser Robert Graauwmans parked his car to block access to Pigdon’s only entrance. When Abigroup management asked him to move it he refused and said it was a CFMEU lockout in support of the redundant employees. Mr Graauwmans then held a meeting with the Pigdon employees.
• CFMEU organiser Brendan Murphy parked his car to block access to De Goldis’ main entrance and held a meeting with the employees at the site.
• The Geelong Project employees failed to work, as scheduled, between 7 and 11am. They commenced work at 11am.

Southern Link Project

• At 5.30am, Mr Powell parked his car to block entry to the Loys Paddock car park and told an Abigroup foreman that they had picketed the gate over Abigroup's refusal to go to mediation and the refusal to employ the redundant employees.
• Mr Powell conducted meetings with the employees at various times. An Abigroup project manager asked the employees to go into the site sheds but they refused to do so. The Loys Paddock employees failed to work, as scheduled, between 7 and 11am. They commenced work at 11am.
• In the early morning, CFMEU organiser Stephen Long parked his car to block access to Glenferrie’s entrance and told management they were not allowing entry because of the Redundancy Dispute. Mr Long held meetings with the employees and did not permit access to the site until 10.35am.
• The Glenferrie employees failed to work, as scheduled, between 7 and 10.35am. They commenced work at 10.35am.

Monash Project

• At 6am CFMEU organiser Gareth Stephenson parked his car to block entry to the High Street car park and told a foreman there was a picket line in place over the Redundancy Dispute.
• Mr Stephenson conducted meetings with the employees at various times and finally allowed them to enter the site at 11am.
• At 6am Mr Tadic parked his car across the gate to the Auburn compound and told a foreman there was a picket over the Redundancy Dispute and the redundant employees should be employed ‘here’.
• Mr Tadic prevented the employees from taking their vehicles in and out of the compound until he moved his car at 11am.
• The Monash Project employees failed to work, as scheduled, between 7 and 11am. They commenced work at 11am.

Alleged contraventions

• The ABCC alleges that on 16 May 2008, the CFMEU, Mr Hill, Mr Edwards, Mr Powell and Mr Tadic contravened s38 of the Building and Construction Industry Improvement Act 2005 (BCII Act) by engaging in unlawful industrial action.
• The ABCC alleges that on 28 May 2008, the CFMEU, Mr Graauwmans, Mr Hill, Mr Murphy, Mr Long, Mr Powell, Mr Reardon, Mr Stephenson, Mr Tadic and Mr Edwards contravened s38 of the BCII Act by engaging in unlawful industrial action.
• The CFMEU, Mr Edwards, Mr Graauwmans, Mr Hill, Mr Long, Mr Murphy, Mr Powell, Mr Stephenson and Mr Tadic contravened s 43 of the BCII Act by attempting to coerce Abigroup to reemploy the redundant employees and employ Mr Round on the Monash Project.

ABCC Proceedings

• The ABCC filed a Statement of Claim in the Federal Court at Melbourne on 23 September 2009
• The first directions hearing has been scheduled for 23 October 2009.