Police have carried out raids in Sydney targeting Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union officials as part of an ongoing investigation.
Australian Federal Police, assisted by NSW Police, were executing the search warrants across Sydney on Wednesday morning.
Raid by the AFP on the CFMEU headquarters in Pyrmont.Credit:Rhett Wyman
The Sydney office of the CFMEU, located in Pyrmont, and officials' homes were among the locations being raided.
A spokesperson for the AFP said the search warrants were part of an investigation by the trade union task force.
"As this remains an ongoing investigation, no further information can be provided at this time," the spokesperson said.
The trade union task force was given responsibility for investigating allegations that flowed from the federal government's trade union royal commission five years ago and also supports the Registered Organisations Commission, established by the Coalition government in 2016 to regulate unions.
The CFMEU represents more than 100,000 members across construction, mining and other sectors. It is considered one of the most powerful unions in the country and has attracted attention from authorities for its sometimes aggressive tactics.
Sally McManus, secretary of the Australian Council of Trade Unions, questioned why police were not raiding "banks for money laundering and child exploitation ... politicians' offices for funding rorts and fundraisers with developers ... companies for tax rorts and wage theft".
"The list could go on and on," she said on Wednesday morning.
The raids come at an awkward time for the union, which on Tuesday opened nominations for its senior leadership positions as part of elections held every four years.
Positions including NSW branch secretary and deputy secretaries are up for grabs, with nominations to close next month and voting next year if necessary.
The CFMEU declined to comment on Wednesday morning, as did the office of Attorney-General and Industrial Relations Minister Christian Porter.
More to come
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Fergus Hunter is a crime reporter for The Sydney Morning Herald.
Nick Bonyhady is industrial relations reporter for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, based between Sydney and Parliament House in Canberra.
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2020-11-17 22:08:00Z
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