FINES (PENALTIES) – AUSTRALIA

Exploited worker told ‘keep quiet or else’ about underpayment

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Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian – Page: 7 : 23-Oct-17

The Federal Circuit Court has ordered Haim and Rina Diamond to pay more than $A70,000 after breaching workplace laws. They were found to have underpaid employees – who were primarily foreign students or visitors on working holiday visas – more than $A34,000 over a six-month period. The couple were also accused of providing false and misleading records to Fair Work inspectors and threatening to report an employee to immigration officials for breaching the conditions of her student visa if she did not withdraw a complaint about her wages.

CORPORATES
FEDERAL CIRCUIT COURT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK OMBUDSMAN, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF IMMIGRATION AND BORDER PROTECTION

Peak penalty for ‘nefarious’ building union

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Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian – Page: 6 : 20-Oct-17

The Construction, Forestry, Mining & Energy Union has fined a total of $A306,000 over a confrontation between former Queensland CFMEU president David Hanna and site managers at a Brisbane construction project in 2015. This is the maximum penalty at present, but Federal Circuit Court judge Salvatore Vasta said the fine would have been much greater if industrial relations laws allowed it. He noted that the CFMEU habitually breaches industrial laws and existing penalties are not acting as a deterrent.

CORPORATES
CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, FEDERAL CIRCUIT COURT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION COMMISSION, MIRVAC GROUP – ASX MGR

Taxpayers cop up to $400,000 Hadgkiss bill

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Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Weekend Australian – Page: 5 : 30-Sep-17

Former Australian Building & Construction Commission head Nigel Hadgkiss has been found by the Federal Court to have breached the Fair Work Act by the Federal Court. He has been directed to pay a penalty of $A8,500 for the breach, with the sum to be paid to the Construction, Forestry Mining & Energy Union. Dave Noonan from the CFMEU said it would give the money to a refuge that helps women escaping domestic violence. Employment Minister Michaelia Cash said taxpayers would be footing Hadgkiss’s legal bill for the case. The amount is expected to be between $A300,000 and $A400,000.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION COMMISSION

CFMEU hit with $2.4m record fines

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Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian – Page: 1 & 7 : 14-Sep-17

Federal Court judge Geoffrey Flick has described the Construction, Forestry, Mining & Energy Union as a "recidivist offender" after finding that it had engaged in unlawful industrial action. The militant union and eight of its officials have been fined more than $A2.4m in total over the industrial action at Sydney’s Barangaroo development in 2014. Justice Flick has also referred four CFMEU officials to the director of Public Prosecutions for possible further legal action over claims that they gave false testimony to the court.

CORPORATES
CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF EMPLOYMENT

Fears lingering over franchisors dodging new law

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Original article by Anna Patty
The Age – Page: 27 : 6-Sep-17

The Australian Government’s legislation to protect employees from being exploited is intended to increase the liability of franchisors for the illegal work practices of franchisees. However, Giri Sivaraman of law firm Maurice Blackburn warns that franchisors may try to circumvent the tougher regime by claiming that they had taken reasonable measures to combat wage theft. Higher financial penalties will apply for "deliberate and systematic" underpayment of wages, but the University of Sydney’s Stephen Clibborn cautions that this may be hard to prove.

CORPORATES
MAURICE BLACKBURN PTY LTD, UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY, 7-ELEVEN STORES PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK OMBUDSMAN, CALTEX AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX CTX, DOMINO’S PIZZA ENTERPRISES LIMITED – ASX DMP

Unlawful strikes cost ‘woeful’ CFMEU $300,000

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Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian – Page: 7 : 4-Aug-17

The Construction, Forestry, Mining & Energy Union has been ordered to pay $A300,000 in fines arising from unprotected strike action at three Queensland building sites in May 2011. The Federal Court described the CFMEU as a "recidivist" with a long history of failing to comply with workplace laws. The Communications, Electrical & Plumbing Union has been fined $A130,000 for participating in the unlawful strike action, and the court noted that it has a better record of complying with workplace laws than the CFMEU.

CORPORATES
CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, COMMUNICATIONS, ELECTRICAL, ELECTRONIC, ENERGY, INFORMATION, POSTAL, PLUMBING AND ALLIED SERVICES UNION OF AUSTRALIA, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF EMPLOYMENT, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Steep fine for 7-Eleven boss over pay rort

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Original article by Sarah Danckert
The Age – Page: 11 : 25-Jul-17

A former Brisbane-based 7-Eleven franchisee has been fined $A168,000 by the Federal Court, following an investigation by the Fair Work Ombudsman into wage underpayment. Jim Chien-Ching Chang was found to have underpaid eight employees by almost $A20,000, with one employee found to have been underpaid by almost $A14,000. The court heard that Chang had admitted to paying staff as little as $A13 an hour at all times of the day.

CORPORATES
7-ELEVEN STORES PTY LTD, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK OMBUDSMAN, JS TOP PTY LTD

$500k in fines for ‘arrogant’ CFMEU

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Original article by Simone Fox Koob
The Australian – Page: 2 : 12-Apr-17

The Construction, Forestry, Mining & Energy Union has been ordered to pay a $A490,000 fine over unlawful industrial action in 2014. The Federal Court has also imposed fines of between $A6,400 and $A22,400 on 10 CFMEU officials for their involvement in the industrial action against Kane Constructions. The strike action, which disrupted 10 construction projects in Victoria, was prompted by Kane’s move to enforce union right-of-entry laws. The judgment has been welcomed by Employment Minister Michaelia Cash.

CORPORATES
CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, KANE CONSTRUCTIONS PTY LTD, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF EMPLOYMENT, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIAN MANUFACTURING WORKERS’ UNION, AUSTRALIAN WORKERS’ UNION-FEDERATION OF INDUSTRIAL, MANUFACTURING AND ENGINEERING EMPLOYEES, SIR OWEN DIXON CHAMBERS, BMC WELDING AND CONSTRUCTION, JOHN BEEVER PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION COMMISSION

Union’s law-breaking ‘knows no bounds’

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Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian – Page: 6 : 16-Dec-16

The Construction, Forestry, Mining & Energy Union has been fined for failing to comply with the Fair Work Act in its dealings with Hindmarsh Construction Australia. The company was the head contractor on a $105m apartment project in Brisbane, and the court upheld claims that the CFMEU had used a threat of industrial action to force Hindmarsh to accede to its demands. The CFMEU and its former national president Dave Hanna have been fined $A37,500.

CORPORATES
CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, HINDMARSH CONSTRUCTION AUSTRALIA, FEDERAL CIRCUIT COURT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION COMMISSION

Major builder faces ban

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Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 10 : 12-Aug-16

The Federal Circuit Court has imposed $A25,575 in penalties on Hutchinson Builders. The court found that the company did not want to award a contract to a business whose enterprise agreement lacked approval from the Construction, Forestry, Mining & Energy Union. The case is now being considered by Fair Work Building & Construction, and Hutchinson Builders may be subject to other sanctions.

CORPORATES
FAIR WORK BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION, HUTCHINSON BUILDERS, FEDERAL CIRCUIT COURT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF EMPLOYMENT, CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA