Victoria’s integrity watchdogs are not equipped to investigate allegations of union corruption and may need expanded powers to tackle criminality in the construction industry, a state government review says., also found workers were reluctant to blow the whistle on alleged misconduct due to fear of reprisals and a confusing complaint system.
Major projects in Victoria are outsourced to several levels of subcontractors, he said, creating chains of contracts between private companies and individuals, most of which have no direct link to the government.“Victoria’s integrity agencies do not have a role in investigating allegations of corrupt behaviour between private bodies, unions and private individuals of the kind that has led to this review,” Mr Wilson said.
He said the review would consider whether a complaints scheme should be set up across Victorian construction projects to provide a “single gateway” for reporting problems. “One person described approaching 10 entities over two years, including state and federal bodies and major contractors, and being unable to find anyone who could deal with the issue they were raising.”
“I want to say to the tens of thousands of construction workers who go to work in this state every single day ... those people deserve a strong union, they deserve the best representation,” she said.But Victorian Opposition Leader John Pesutto described the review as a farce and said only a royal commission could properly examine the alleged criminal conduct across so-called Big Build worksites.