THE building industry watchdog is seeking the suspension of right of entry permits for seven union officials recently penalised for a series of unlawful incidents occurring on three Adelaide-based construction projects.

The Fair Work Building and Construction (FWBC) inspectorate applied to have the permits revoked from the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) officials for a period of up to two years.

If successful, the group would be unable to enter building or construction sites in Australia until 2017.

Among the officials is Victorian organiser John Perkovic, who received a $5000 fine for verbally abusing a FWBC representative in May 2014 while attempting to gain entry to a hotel construction site without producing a relevant permit or entry notice.

Specifically, Justice White of the Federal Court of Australia described the behaviour as ‘provocative, bullying and intimidating’, and that Mr Perkovic sought to ‘belittle and humiliate’ the FWBC official.

Accompanying Mr Perkovic during the incident was Assistant Secretary Michael McDermott, who received a $4000 penalty and now faces possible suspension of his right of entry permit for up to 18 months.

The Federal Court issued fines totalling $205,100 to the officials and the trade union for contraventions of the Fair Work Act 2009 in relation to right of entry at the Resthaven Aged Care Facility, the Ibis Hotel and the Minda Homes construction sites.

“The record indicates an attitude of indifference by the CFMEU to compliance with the requirements of the legislation regarding the exercise of rights of entry,” Justice White said.

“It also indicates that deterrence must be a prominent consideration in the fixing of penalties in the present cases.”

The seven individuals facing suspension of right of entry permits are:

• John Perkovic, Organiser, VIC – two year revocation
• Luke Stephenson, former Official, SA – two year revocation
• David Bolton, Organiser, SA – two year revocation
• Michael McDermott, Assistant Secretary – 18 month revocation
• Troy Smart, Organiser, WA – three month suspension
• Anthony Vitler, Organiser, ACT – three month suspension
• Anthony Sloane, Organiser, NSW – three month suspension

FWBC chief Nigel Hadgkiss warned the inspectorate would continue to crack down on trade union misconduct across the construction sector.

“Holding a right of entry permit is a privilege,” he said.

“Everyone on a construction site needs to follow the law, whether they are a union official, worker or employer.”

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Following the recent announcement that 72 trade union officials are currently before courts, 58 of whom face a combined total of 403 breaches of workplace laws, the FWBC has revealed that prosecutions in the past year have surged by 380 per cent.

The CFMEU has faced $5.6 million in fines as the direct result of cases raised by the FWBC and other government agencies, but Mr Hadgkiss said misconduct continues to be rife.

“There has been an unbelievable workload increase at the agency … However, it seems that the penalties are not deterring conduct,” Mr Hadgkiss told The Australian.

“There is no doubt the compulsory powers which we and other federal government agencies have are critical to doing job of trying to uphold the law on building and construction sites in Australia.”

The current powers of the FWBC are due to expire in May 2015, placing urgency on Senate crossbenchers to pass the Building and Construction Industry (Improving Productivity) Bill 2013 which would re-establish the Australian Building and Construction Commission to tackle ongoing union thuggery in the industry.

The recent statistics from the FWBC, which also showed a 180 per cent increase in workplace investigations, adds new pressure to vote in favour of the Bill, which has received long-standing support from national resource industry employer group AREEA.

“No part of our community, be it businesses, trade unions or any other organisations, should be able to engage in acts of wilful defiance of our laws, maintain unaccountable slush funds, or fail to properly serve the interests of their members,” AREEA chief executive Steve Knott said.

“It is time our parliamentarians reflect community sentiment and deliver effective regulation that will to rid our nation’s union movement of crooks, criminals and thugs.”

The Bill is expected to face a Senate vote in coming days.