CFMEU boss to step away from national leadership post
The top dog of Australia's notorious construction union is stepping back as national leader and turning his full gaze to a troubled state branch.
Zach Smith has told staff he will step away as CFMEU national secretary but continue to lead the Victorian branch, multiple media outlets report.
Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan said Mr Smith had made a "significant contribution" to reforming the union following claims of bikie and organised crime infiltration.
"We have zero tolerance for the allegations that have been made and we thank Zach for his work," she told reporters on Thursday.
The CFMEU and administrator's office have been contacted for comment.
The union's construction division was forced into administration by the federal government in August.
Elected leaders of its construction division branches in Queensland, NSW, Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia and the Northern Territory were sacked and replaced by administrator Mark Irving KC.
The barrister recently took over the ACT's branch and removed Michael Hiscox as acting secretary, according to the Australian Financial Review.
Mr Hiscox replaced Mr Smith in the role after he became national and Victorian secretary following the exit of controversial leader John Setka last July.
Setka claimed the allegations against the union were false but said he would step down to stop the barrage of stories.
A damning interim report by lawyer Geoffrey Watson SC said "lawlessness" in the union's construction arm was widespread.
He made seven recommendations, including further investigations to identify instances when Victorian branch officials had engaged in or been subject to threatening, violent or abusive conduct.
All were accepted by the administrator, who provided Mr Watson with coercive powers to continue his work.
A separate Victorian government-commissioned review was slammed as a "whitewash" after it did not cite examples of corruption or criminal infiltration, or hold any official or politician accountable.
Ms Allan originally referred the allegations to Victoria Police and the Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission for investigation.
In March, the premier said a "new" taskforce would probe fresh allegations in the construction sector, including assaults against female workers.
It was later revealed the police taskforce had been running since at least early August.
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