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John Setka is set to be expelled from the union he led for 12 years and a powerful Victorian organiser has been summarily removed from the CFMEU in a dramatic effort by the union’s new administrator to reassert control of the rogue Victorian branch.
The move to formally tear up Setka’s CFMEU membership for repeatedly threatening and intimidating administrator Michael Crosby and his staff comes after the disgraced former union chief was photographed dining at an upmarket steak and oyster restaurant with a building company boss notorious for ripping off union members and subcontractors.
Also at the Esca Grill Seafood and Steak restaurant lunch with company boss Frank Nadinic— who the CFMEU once labelled “cruel Frank” for rorting workers — was Setka’s former union lieutenant John Perkovic.
Perkovic is under active federal police investigation for taking up to $3 million in suspected bribes from other building company bosses also accused of exploiting workers.
Five industry and union insiders said the sight of Setka rubbing shoulders with Nadinic – an exploitative building firm boss whose building firm Setka attacked publicly in 2015 for conduct that denied dozens of union members their entitlements — was illustrative of the demise of the CFMEU under Setka’s reign into a union that privileged company and gangland bosses above ordinary workers.
This masthead could not confirm allegations from those sources that Setka and Perkovic were assisting Nadinic in handling a building industry dispute, as all three men were not able to be contacted.
In his LinkedIn profile, Nadinic describes himself as an “experienced senior consultant with a demonstrated history of working in the construction and development industry” and a “strong consulting professional with a First class honours focused in Life from School of hard knocks”.
Perkovic was sacked from the union last October after this masthead revealed he had received undisclosed benefits worth up to $3 million from company bosses he oversaw as a union official.
Over the last two years, this masthead’s Building Bad series has revealed how multiple companies with track records of mistreating workers or offering them insecure gigs in labour hire roles were given preferential treatment by the CFMEU.
It has also revealed how Setka and Perkovic’s underworld ally, union fixer Mick Gatto, has been paid millions of dollars by companies that have gone bust owing workers or paid the underworld veteran to keep the union from enforcing hard union-won pay and conditions EBAs.
On Wednesday evening, Crosby wrote to Setka saying he intended to initiate formal proceedings to rip up Setka’s CFMEU membership “for a period of 5 years” for allegedly engaging in “misconduct” by threatening, abusing and denigrating administration staff by calling them dogs in expletive-ridden tirades on email and in other forums.
As recently as Sunday, Setka threatened Crosby with violence in an interview he gave to this masthead.
“If he wants to come after me, he better f—ing watch himself,” Setka said on Sunday. “Because if I run into him in the street, it’s not going to be good for him … He’s not a f—ing koala bear. He’s not, f—ing, a protected species.”
Police have also moved to obtain a personal intervention order for Crosby against Setka following the remarks.
Setka, who did not return calls on Thursday, has until August 7 to make his case to Crosby as to why he should not be expelled as a member of the CFMEU.
His expulsion would complete an extraordinary fall from power of a man who once wielded significant influence over the Victorian Labor Party and who continues to have allies in select union and political circles, including Allan government minister Luba Grigorovitch.
The move against Setka by Crosby comes after the administrator declared on Monday the culture in the union’s previously all-powerful Victorian arm remained broken and warned that the pariah branch would stay in administration indefinitely while its sacked former bosses still exert control.
In the interview, Crosby also called on government and the wider industry to do far more to combat the construction industry organised crime and corruption that Victoria Police has separately warned it is powerless to tackle.
On Thursday, Crosby also moved to sap the ongoing influence of ex-CFMEU vice president Joe Myles, who this masthead revealed on Monday was still influencing the activities of union officials on Labor’s Big Build.
Crosby removed union organiser Adam Olsen from the CFMEU amid concerns Olsen, who is a close friend of Myles, was still acting on Myles’ orders. Olsen and Myles could not be contacted for comment.
Myles was previously the top CFMEU official on the Big Build and has been accused – including in a report tabled in the Queensland royal commission into the union – of placing bikie gang members as union delegates on state government rail and road projects.
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Nick McKenzie is an Age investigative journalist who has three times been named the Graham Perkin Australian Journalist of the Year. A winner of 20 Walkley Awards, including the Gold Walkley, he investigates politics, business, foreign affairs and criminal justice.Connect via email.From our partners
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