The CFMEU is doing what the Howard Government stopped, forcing their control on the Management of Construction firms. They are no different now than they were with Bill Oliver controlling them and his attack dog John Setka always at hand. Mr Setka has been accused of strong arm tactics in his career, which he has vehemently denied.
However it appears there is an impressive 60 charges on his rap sheet between 1982 and 1991 in a violent battle with the law during unprecedented turmoil in the construction industry. 40 of these charges earned Mr Setka convictions for multiple times for indecent language, assault by kicking, assaulting police and wilful trespass.. Mr Setka was with the Builders Labourers Federation.
When the Australian newspaper caught up with Mr Setka he was sitting with Melbourne identity Mick Gatto at a wine bar opposite Parliament House in Melbourne yesterday, Mr Setka said he was under legal instruction not to talk to The Australian but added that many of the offences were committed in the name of protecting workers.
“A lot of the charging was dismissed on appeal,” he said. “You go to a picket line and you just get loaded up with a whole lot of charges.”
Mr Gatto said Mr Setka worked hard for his members and deserved respect. As a matter of public interest Mr Gatto is an Italian-Australian criminal and is known for his involvement in the Melbourne underworld. He claims to be a ‘professional mediator’ within the building industry in Melbourne. I will leave this to your imagination.
Mr Setka is suing the Opposition Leader, claiming he has been “gravely injured” by his public portrayal as a construction site thug. Mr Abbott, who made the claim at a Master Builders Association conference in February, has contended he had been true in his criticism of Mr Setka.
Safety and labour rights concerns have been raised against Rio Tinto by unions and political action groups, in particular the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU). The CFMEU ran a campaign against the company after it tried to de-unionise its workforce after the introduction of the Howard Government’s Workplace Relations Act 1996.
This means do we want a workforce controlled by the John Setka’s of this world, people that can arrange to have a friendly coffee with underworld criminals such as Mick Gatto. Men that learnt their trade during the years of the BLF, a look that is again making a comeback, a man who is to become a leading figure of the CMFEU according to the hierarchy. A man who will have a great influence over the ALP regime, and a man who will flex his muscles if he doesn’t like your smile.
Or do we want a Government that won’t be influenced by the John Setka, Bill Oliver, CFMEU or the Mick Gatto’s of society and will make sure they do not return to the times of the BLF under a Communist regime.
If your answer is the latter then we need to make sure our vote goes to no one that even preferences the ALP or Greens, and make sure others understand this is a matter of returning to a life that the Gillard gang have tried to destroy.
