The Australian " Mob " !

Legitimate business in the United States has long feared becoming a target of " the Mob ": that form of " organized crime " that was a feature of the feared Teamsters Union and which half a century ago hit the headlines when " Murder Incorporated " became openly available to perform a " hit " - for a price !

That" Mob " is still operating in the US, but law enforcement has new weapons to fight it and one of those is the " RICO " act.  Legislation to outlaw the masterminds behind organized crime called the " Racketeer Influences and Corrupt Organization Act " was passed in 1970 and made it illegal to even be a member of the " Mob  " - it was not necessary to prove an actual crime to get a conviction.

Here in Australia, a Royal Commission is enquiring into Trade Union corruption.   The spotlight is shining on the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Electrical union - known by the acronym CFMEU.   The exploits of this union in using stand over tactics and coercion to cream off profits goes back decades.  It has long waged war with the companies that build infrastructure in this country.

The Royal Commission heard evidence from Boral, a concrete manufacturer which became the meat in the sandwich in a dispute between the CFMEU and Grocon, a major building company.   Boral trucks delivering concrete under contract were constantly denied entrance to the site by CFMEU orders and consequently this cost Boral $8 million over an eighteen month period.

This is reminiscent of tactics used that sent several high profile building companies into bankruptcy several decades ago.   Unions created a supposed dispute in the middle of a major concrete pour and walked off the job.    When a floor of a major high rise building is being poured it must be completed in a single operation to gain the required strength.   These walk offs required the entire floor to be jackhammered and removed - at a cost that could run to millions.

At that time, the government threatened major legislation that convinced the unions to negotiate a settlement.   An  " understanding " is now in place that concrete pours will not be interrupted, but in many instances standover tactics remain in place.   It seems to be an accepted practice that the payment of an agreed sum of money to a nominated union fund will immediately result in further problems on that site simply " going away ".    To many contracting companies, that is now accepted as a normal part of " doing business ".

It seems that the job of this Royal Commission will be to lay bare the corruption that is endemic in the building industry.    There is no doubt that the men who hold the levers of power in the unions are sane and practical when it comes to assessing risks.   An all out war with the government would be disastrous for both sides  and - despite the rhetoric - sanity is expected to prevail.

The outcome will probably be decided behind closed doors and in smoke filled rooms  - where proxies of government ministers and union leaders will thrash out " deals " that are decided by a curt nod of the head - or in some cases a shaking of hands.  Compromise requires give and take on both sides - and given that this stand off is highly political - both sides will be expected to trumpet victory.

It will simply be a compromise to cool things down and avoid events reaching crisis point.  It is said that war is just an extreme form of politics - and war delivers irreparable damage to both sides.  Hopefully, both sides understand that truism !