The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC)鈥檚 cartel case against the聽Construction Forestry Mining and Energy Union聽(CFMEU) ACT and ACT secretary Jason O鈥橫ara has collapsed.
The Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions withdrew criminal cartel charges against the CFMEU and O鈥橫ara in the ACT Magistrates Court on August 17.
The prosecution emerged from the 2015 Heydon Royal Commission into the building unions. The cartel case is the third recent criminal prosecution against the聽CFMEU聽to collapse before trial.
The聽ACCC聽had alleged that, in 2012 and 2013 the CFMEU ACT had tried to induce local steel fixers and scaffolders to set a minimum price to afford a wage rise. This, it said, was cartel behaviour. The union and O鈥橫ara disputed the accusations.
Dave Noonan,聽CFMEU national construction secretary, said the case was 鈥渁n abuse of power by the聽ACCC聽and should never have proceeded to court鈥.
All the charges against O鈥橫ara were withdrawn at the committal hearing. Noonan said the聽ACCC聽must explain how the case proceeded when it knew the charges were unsupported by the facts. 鈥淚t is another example of the abuse of legal process and failed prosecutions stemming from the discredited Heydon Royal Commission鈥, he said.
Noonan called on ACCC chair Rod Sims to apologise to O鈥橫ara and resign. 鈥淭he聽ACCC聽has attempted to weaponise the Consumer and Competition Act to attack the right of trade unions to collectively bargain.
鈥淭he federal government sank significant funds into this case, continuing its endless war against the rights of working Australians and the trade unions that represent them.鈥