Building and Construction Industry (Improving Productivity) Bill: Government resurrects ABCC

Wednesday 20 November 2013 @ 10.34 a.m. | Industrial Law | Trade & Commerce

On 14 November 2013 the new government resurrected the Australian Building Construction Commission (ABCC) as it promised to do in the recent election by introducing into the House of Representatives the Building and Construction Industry (Improving Productivity) Bill 2013 (the Bill) and the Building and Construction Industry (Consequential and Transitional Provisions) Bill 2013 (the Consequential Bill).

To quote the second reading speech:

"The Building and Construction Industry (Improving Productivity) Bill 2013 fulfils the Government’s election commitment to re-establish the Australian Building and Construction Commission".

About the Bill

In speaking to the legislation the minister said the current Bill had "two predecessor Acts upon which it is built", namely; the Building and Construction Industry Improvement Act 2005 (the BCII Act) and the Workplace Relations Act 1996.

The BCII Act which was established in response to the workplace relations recommendations of the Royal Commission into the Building and Construction Industry in 2003 which according to the minister "established that building sites and construction projects were hotbeds of intimidation, lawlessness, thuggery and violence".

Technically the BCII Act was aligned with the Workplace Relations Act 1996 to mirror its relevant provisions. The most significant provisions being directed at the unique nature of the building industry addressing specific inappropriate and unlawful behaviour which the Royal Commission found was prevalent in the building industry. The objects of the Act were furthered by the inclusion of appropriate penalties and the establishment of an effective regulator (the ABCC) which had a full suite of powers available to it to regulate workers in the industry. The BCII Act was replaced by the Fair Work (Building Industry) Act 2012, by the previous Labor government, which abolished the ABCC and created a new agency, the Office of the Fair Work Building Industry Inspectorate, to regulate the building and construction industry with restricted powers. That legislation also removed the building industry specific laws that provided higher penalties for building industry participants for breaches of industrial laws and broader circumstances under which industrial action attracts penalties.

The new government Bill re-establishes the ABCC and replaces the Office of the Fair Work Building Industry Inspectorate by putting in place a regulator with the same type of powers that proved strong and effective under the BCII Act.  Of special importance are the provisions of Chapters 5 and 6 of the Bill which include building industry specific provisions relating to unlawful action and coercion and restores the higher penalties for contraventions of those provisions or in other words:

"If passed, the legislation will allow the ABCC to separate legitimate protests from unlawful and organised picketing aimed at disrupting building and construction work."

The Consequential Bill deals with consequential and transitional matters relating to the re-establishment of the ABCC and other matters set out in the Bill to provide for transition from the institutions, functions and powers created by the Fair Work (Building Industry) Act 2012 to the new system.

Reaction to the Legislation

The legislation has been received well by employers in  building and related industries. For example, website Sourceable (Industry News & Analysis) says in article on the topic:

"Building industry groups in Australia have unanimously welcomed legislation introduced into Parliament on Thursday (14 November 2013) to reintroduce the Australian Building and Construction Commission (ABCC). . ."

and quotes Housing Industry Association Industrial Relations spokesperson David Humphrey:

“Re-establishing the ABCC is essential to boosting Australia’s productivity and to ensuring law and order prevails at our nation’s building sites.”

On the union side of the equation reaction to the legislation has been unfavourable with CFMEU Secretary Dave Noonan quoted in an article by Sourceable (Industry News & Analysis) as saying:

“The Federal Government apparently believes that discriminating against blue collar workers in one industry is acceptable . . .
If these laws were applied to other people in our community on the basis of ethnic background, sexual identity or gender, there would be an outcry.”

Ahead for the Legislation

Debate on the Bills 2013 was adjourned in the House of Representatives on 14 November 2013 with the government tabling plans for a Senate inquiry to report back on the Bills by 2 December 2013.

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