A FWC full bench has clarified that divisions seeking to demerge from unions under legislation introduced in 2020 cannot rely on allegations of past mismanagement, because consideration of such cases is limited to "forward looking" assessments of their capacity to represent members.
The CFMMEU's mining energy division looks likely to be able to proceed with its plans to demerge from the broader union, after the parties reached a peace deal.
The FWC says a proposed amalgamation of the Australian Hotels Association and the Accommodation Association of Australia will give the latter a "strong voice" within the merged employer body and held that only its members will have to vote on it in a ballot opening next month.
The FWC has given the CFMMEU's legal team access to the mining and energy division's membership roll ahead of a hearing into its demerger bid, after the amalgamated union argued it owns the division's records and rejected suggestions its in-house lawyers might misuse the information.
Incoming CFMMEU construction and general division national secretary Zachary (Zach) Smith will take over from the long-serving Dave Noonan in April, after 15 years with the union and serving as leader and assistant leader of the ACT branch for the past three years.
The CFMMEU's Mining & Energy division has today in echoes of the ABCC kicked off its new bid to break away from the parent mega-union by tendering evidence that the Construction & General division has breached workplace or safety laws 227 times since 1999.
The CFMMEU is under internal attack for the second time in two days, with the manufacturing division applying today to hold a vote on going it alone, after the mining and energy division renewed its own demerger bid yesterday.
The UFU's national office has won court backing to "resuscitate" its Queensland branch after a precipitous membership decline and a subsequent mass resignation by officers and delegates in 2019.