Legislation passed to abolish the ABCC

The Australian Building and Construction Commission (ABCC) is to be abolished after the Building and Construction Industry (Transition to Fair Work) Bill was passed in the Senate on 20 March. The Office of the Fair Work Building Industry Inspectorate will replace the ABCC.

Bill Shorten, Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations, said the passing of the Bill has delivered the Gillard Government’s election promise to abolish the ABCC, which was established as an industry watchdog by the Howard Government in 2005.

Shorten said that penalties for industrial law breaches will be brought into line with the Fair Work Act 2009, while compulsory examination notice will be retained, subject to safeguards.

Industry bodies have expressed mixed feelings about the abolition.

The Australian Institute of Building (AIB) said the Australian economy will suffer as a result of the ABCC being scrapped.

“The abolition of the ABCC is a retrograde and dangerous step,” said Robert Hunt, CEO of the AIB. “However, the AIB and its professional members will work with the government to get the best out of the new regulator, despite its limited powers.”

The Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) has welcomed the abolition of the ABCC, claiming that it was “the last vestige of Work Choices” and its abolition was overdue.

However, it expressed concern that the new Fair Work Building Industry Inspectorate may retain some of what it calls the “coercive powers” of the ABCC to carry out interrogations of construction workers.

CFMEU National Secretary Michael O’Connor criticised the ABCC, drawing reference to its alleged mishandling of evidence in a 2009 committal hearing and calling it a “flawed and damaging organisation”.

“[The ABCC] has failed to tackle safety issues or illegal conduct by employers, including the widespread use of sham contracting which cost the taxpayer billions each year,” O’Connor said.

By contrast, the Institute of Public Affairs (IPA) claims the abolition of the ABCC is an initiative of the Gillard Government that aims to “dismantle the tough regulation of the industry”.

“The new regulator, the Fair Work Building Industry Inspectorate, has a watered down role,” the IPA said in a statement. “Its powers are reduced. Penalties become one third of present levels. Legal remedies against unlawful action are constrained.”

While the CFMEU expressed concern over the ABCC’s “coercive powers”, the IPA claimed that the abolition of the ABCC would “see a return of coercion, intimidation and thuggery to the industry”.

“The Bill is a final repudiation of serious efforts to clean up the industry,” said John Lloyd, Director of the Work Reform and Product Unit at the IPA. “The government’s surrender to pressure from the unions is a disgrace.”

Shorten, however, expressed confidence in the new regulator’s powers: “The government believes this legislation balances the requirements to ensure compliance with the law and the fair treatment of individuals in the building and construction industry.

“The Gillard Government has always supported a strong building industry regulator and a strong set of compliance arrangements for the building industry. The legislation passed [yesterday] meets this commitment.”