Craig Thomson Untouchable

The Health Services Union (HSU) is a health union with over 70,000 members working in all areas of healthcare across Australia.  The membership of the union includes doctors, nurses and allied health professionals such as physiotherapists and radiographers, ambulance officers, clerical and administrative staff, managers and support staff.


Opposition Leader Tony Abbott has said what everyone is thinking – that there has been a deliberate “obstruction of justice” orchestrated by the allies of the Labor government involving the Craig Thomson affair. And it stinks to high heaven. Here is a man whose behaviour was so despicable while he was Secretary of the Health Services Union, the ACTU has sacked the union and told them to clean up their act.

Thomson followed the tradition of other union executives down through the ages - he discovered his own personal money tree - he had access to Union funds and could withdraw money at will.   Alleged cash advances of $100,000, overseas trips, school fees, visits to brothels, it was all so very easy and the poor suckers who paid him their union dues, would never know. But they know now.  

But it looks likely that we will never see a fair and just outcome to this sorry affair because it seems that Craig Thomson is untouchable. After waiting three years for FWA to investigate the allegations of financial mismanagement, no charges have been laid and the only response from the PM is to reiterate yet again the fact that “FWA works independently of the government.”

We are told that the FWA report is not a brief of evidence from which charges can be laid and the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions is not able to conduct its own criminal investigation. But FWA found 181 contraventions of workplace laws by three former or current HSU officials and a fourth person but they refuse to name them.  We want to know who they are and have them charged.

The reputation of Fair Work Australia is now in tatters.     Craig Thomson said yesterday he was “encouraged” by the latest development and so he should be, this pathetic obstruction of justice by the Labor government is working very well.