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Victorian inquiry hears contractors were warned over Sunbury rail dispute
A Victorian royal commission has heard that a state infrastructure official said a minister’s office warned contractors they could lose future work in Victoria if they failed to resolve an industrial dispute at a rail project. The evidence raises questions about how government pressure and union involvement affected the handling of the dispute and the contractors’ work.
Former official Peter Wilkinson said his manager, Evan Tattersall, relayed the warning in June 2022, during a shutdown at the Gap Road level crossing project in Sunbury. Wilkinson said the contractors were John Holland and CPB Constructions, and that he passed the information to a project executive; he could not say whether the minister’s office knew they were bidding for airport rail work. CPB delivery director Stephen Villella told the inquiry that workers feared the CFMEU and were pressured not to work, while he considered the union’s safety concerns insufficient to justify stopping the site.
In short
- Inquiry hears contractors were warned they could lose Victorian work.
- The warning concerned a 2022 rail project dispute.
- A company director said workers feared union pressure.
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The case for
If the minister’s office warned contractors they could lose future Victorian work, that would raise serious concerns about political pressure influencing a commercial dispute and contractors’ ability to make independent decisions. The evidence that workers feared the union and felt pressured not to work also supports scrutiny of whether union involvement improperly disrupted the project.
The case against
The warning is reported second-hand, and the official could not say whether the minister’s office knew the contractors were bidding for airport rail work, so its context and purpose remain uncertain. The union’s safety concerns and workers’ fears also deserve consideration; a shutdown may have reflected genuine workplace risks rather than improper pressure, even if the contractor judged those concerns insufficient.
Explained simply
Victoria’s Sunbury line is a suburban rail route being upgraded, including work to remove the Gap Road level crossing. The project involved contractors John Holland and CPB Constructions, while the state government oversaw the infrastructure programme.
The CFMEU is a union representing workers in construction and related industries. Disputes between unions and contractors can affect whether work proceeds, while government decisions may influence public projects and future contracts.
The inquiry is examining how the dispute was handled and what role officials, the minister’s office and the union played. Its evidence may help clarify how government oversight and workplace pressure intersected on major infrastructure projects.
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Originally published by The Guardian as “Minister’s office said contractor should handle CFMEU or lose work in Victoria, Big Build inquiry hears”.