John Setka (born September 1964) is an
Australian
Australian(s) may refer to:
Australia
* Australia, a country
* Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia
** European Australians
** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists
** Aboriginal Au ...
trade union
A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...
ist and professional cyclist. He is the
Victorian state secretary of the
Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union
The Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union (CFMMEU, though most commonly still referred to as CFMEU) is Australia's main trade union in construction, forestry, maritime, mining, energy, textile, clothing and footwear producti ...
.
Biography
John Setka was born to a
Croatian labourer Bob Setka. Bob was among the few labourers who survived the
West Gate Bridge
The West Gate Bridge is a steel, box girder, cable-stayed bridge in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, spanning the Yarra River just north of its mouth into Port Phillip. It carries the West Gate Freeway and is a vital link between the inner ci ...
collapse in 1970, a tragedy caused by improper structural design which killed 35 workers.
Setka began working as a labourer at the age of 19, where he began being involved with trade union movement under the
Builders Labourers Federation
The Builders Labourers Federation (BLF) was an Australian trade union that existed from 1911 until 1972, and from 1976 until 1986, when it was permanently deregistered in various Australian states by the federal Hawke Labor government and some ...
.
While in the BLF, he was mentored by the Victorian state secretary of the union
John Cummins.
In June 2019, he was found guilty of using a carriage service to harass his wife, for which he received a 12-month good behaviour bond.
Union leadership (2012–Present)
Setka's approach to industrial action has been controversial due to the "pervasive power of the CFMEU over construction companies".
In 2012, following criticisms, he unsuccessfully attempted to sue the then opposition leader
Tony Abbott
Anthony John Abbott (; born 4 November 1957) is a former Australian politician who served as the 28th prime minister of Australia from 2013 to 2015. He held office as the leader of the Liberal Party of Australia.
Abbott was born in Londo ...
for "allegedly implying he is a union thug".
In 2015, Setka encouraged workers within the
Rail, Tram and Bus Union
The Australian Rail Tram and Bus Industry Union (RTBU) is an Australian trade union representing rail, tram and bus workers. The RTBU is affiliated with the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) and the Australian Labor Party (ALP).
Intern ...
to strike during the
Australian Football League
The Australian Football League (AFL) is the only fully professional competition of Australian rules football. Through the AFL Commission, the AFL also serves as the sport's governing body and is responsible for controlling the laws of the gam ...
finals to "use finals fever to their advantage in their bitter industrial fight with Metro Trains and Yarra Trams".
The decision was criticised by Victorian
Labor
Labour or labor may refer to:
* Childbirth, the delivery of a baby
* Labour (human activity), or work
** Manual labour, physical work
** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer
** Organized labour and the labour ...
minister
Jacinta Allan
Jacinta Marie Allan (born 19 September 1973) is an Australian politician serving as the 29th and current deputy premier of Victoria since June 2022. She is a member of the Victorian Branch of the Australian Labor Party and has been a member of ...
due to the strike's impact on businesses.
At a Labor Party conference in 2018, Setka criticised the former prime minister
Kevin Rudd
Kevin Michael Rudd (born 21 September 1957) is an Australian former politician and diplomat who served as the 26th prime minister of Australia from 2007 to 2010 and again from June 2013 to September 2013, holding office as the leader of the ...
stating ""he's one of the worst fucking Labor PMs we've ever had" as "he kept the
ABCC and coercive powers and he wants to talk about workers and the trade union movement. Fucking shit talker."
Expulsion from Labor
In June 2019, the
Australian Labor Party
The Australian Labor Party (ALP), also simply known as Labor, is the major centre-left political party in Australia, one of two major parties in Australian politics, along with the centre-right Liberal Party of Australia. The party forms the f ...
leader
Anthony Albanese
Anthony Norman Albanese ( or ; born 2 March 1963) is an Australian politician serving as the 31st and current prime minister of Australia since 2022. He has been leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) since 2019 and the member of parlia ...
proposed to expel Setka from the Labor Party over alleged comments against "anti-violence campaigner
Rosie Batty
Rosemary Anne "Rosie" Batty (born 1962) is an English-born Australian domestic violence campaigner. She became a campaigner in 2014, after her 11-year-old son Luke Batty was murdered by his father, Greg Anderson. She was made Australian of the Y ...
". The following day, Setka objected to any attempt to remove him from his position, stating that there was "dirty politics at work" due to his "view of where the union should be in regards to the ALP, and some people probably don't share that view".
Reactions to Setka's behaviour and his potential expulsion from the party were mixed from union and political movements. The CFMEU Victoria branch has threatened to cut financial support to ALP if John Setka is expelled. As of June 2019, the New South Wales and Western Australia branches of the CFMEU announced their support for Setka. Senate crossbencher
Jacqui Lambie
Jacquiline Louise Lambie (born 26 February 1971) is an Australian politician who is the leader and founder of the Jacqui Lambie Network (JLN). She is a Senator for Tasmania since 2019, and was previously a Senator from 2014 to 2017.
Lambie, an ...
revealed she had invited Setka to her house in
Tasmania
)
, nickname =
, image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdi ...
for Sunday roast, in a bid to convince Setka to resign as head of CFMEU Victoria branch. The senator has threatened to vote for the
Coalition
A coalition is a group formed when two or more people or groups temporarily work together to achieve a common goal. The term is most frequently used to denote a formation of power in political or economical spaces.
Formation
According to ''A Gui ...
government's ''
Ensuring Integrity Bill'', a bill banning union officials who repeatedly break the law, if Setka does not resign.
Australian Council of Trade Unions
The Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU), originally the Australasian Council of Trade Unions, is the largest peak body representing workers in Australia. It is a national trade union centre of 46 affiliated unions and eight trades and la ...
's secretary
Sally McManus
Sally McManus (born 31 July 1971) is an Australian trade unionist, feminist and political activist who has served as the Secretary of the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) since 2017. She is the first woman to hold the position of Secret ...
also called on Setka to step down.
In July 2019, Setka applied for an injunction to the
Supreme Court of Victoria
The Supreme Court of Victoria is the highest court in the Australian state of Victoria. Founded in 1852, it is a superior court of common law and equity, with unlimited and inherent jurisdiction within the state.
The Supreme Court comprises ...
to stop the expulsion vote by the party, arguing that the Labor Party's national executive does not have the power to expel him, and that it should be a matter for the Victorian branch. The injunction temporarily prevented him from being expelled from the party. The court responded in August 2019 that it could "not interfere with internal decisions of voluntary unincorporated associations" and "the motion to expel
r Setkafrom the ALP is not within the court's jurisdiction". However, the court warned that the party's national executive would need to be compliant with any state processes to expel a member. Setka attempted to appeal and overturn the Supreme Court's refusal to block his expulsion from the party.
On 23 October 2019, Setka withdrew the appeal to the Supreme Court, and the Labor Party expelled him from the party later that day.
References
External links
John Setkaon
Twitter
Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Setka, John
Trade unionists from Melbourne
Australian trade unionists
Living people
Australian people of Croatian descent
1964 births