Turf Wars and Hidden Paws. The Desert Rat smells an odious rodent in the current campaign to remove Kevin Reynolds (the Incumbent) as secretary of the CFMEU.
The Desert Rat is aware of the close personal relationship between Darren Kavenagh (the Pretender) and Dave Kelly the secretary of the Miscellaneous Workers' Union. The "Miscos" are the biggest Left union and the power base of Jim "the Hidden Paw" McGinty in the ALP.
Kevin Reynolds and the CFMEU have been the only union that hasn't disowned Brian Burke during the Smiths Beach Inquiry hysteria which has successfully purged Burke's influence within the ALP. Dave Kelly who is close to Jim McGinty, has been a prominent public critic of Kevin Reynolds and his role and involvement in the ALP. The Desert Rat suspects this is only because of Reynolds links with Burke.
Tim Kucera is McGinty's son-in-law, and was the legal officer for the CFMEU for 5 years. He left some months ago after a disagreement with an organiser. Reynolds always stuck by Tim Kucera despite his father-in-law's distaste for and antipathy towards Reynolds. Tim Kucera then went to work for legal firm Slater and Gordon who were the lawyers retained by the CFMEU.
Recently Slater and Gordon advised their staff (because of the conflict of interest) not to have any brief with Darren Kavenagh. They possibly became aware that Tim Kucera and Darren Kavanagh were close friends and were in regular contact.
Was Tim Kucera suspected of giving free legal advice to Darren Kavenagh?
Slater and Gordon must have become aware of some contact because Tim Kucera gave one them a months notice. The Desert Rat understands that Slater and Gordon then wanted Kucera to cease work immediately and gave him one month's pay in lieu.
Yesterday at the Supreme Court, Tim Kucera appeared, now working for Darren Kavenagh's lawyers. Tim Kucera was the briefing solicitor Phillip Laskaris, a Fremantle lawyers and diving buddy of Jim McGinty.
In case the punters don't know, Phillip Laskarus* was the go-between (le messenger) between Burke and McGinty in the "the good old days".
The spoils here are significant. If Darren Kavenagh were successful, Tim Kucera would be the legal officer of the CFMEU, there would be a purge of organisers and the executive of the CFMEU. The Left would effectively gain control of the CFMEU votes on the State Executive of the ALP strengthening Jim McGinty's vice-like grip over the political apparatus in Western Australia.
The icing on the cake would be that the remaining union support that Burke enjoys would be removed, isolating him further.
It is the view of the Desert Rat that there is no one in the Right or Centre of the ALP that has the ability and skill to take on this Left power block.
Is this just a Desert Rat's conspiracy theory?
* One of Phillip Laskaris's present jobs is a Director of Windimurra Vanadium the company John Bowler and Julian Grill were instrumental in getting reopened after its purchase and immediate shutdown by Swiss mining giant Xstrata. Both were politically castrated for this bit of civic duty. At least the Windimurra employees appreciate the jobs created.
This is interesting. Although McGinty couldn't organise a chook raffle he probably is active behind the scenes.
ReplyDeleteTim Kucera stands to get a very large pay off for his efforts. No ethics there. Are we surprised? Hardly. Although its hard to believe the apple could organise anything given the tree it comes from....
Did Kecura and Kavanagh try to sell out their own members?
ReplyDeleteComments have been bandied about for a long time that lawyer Tim Kecura, close mate of Darren Kavanagh, left the CFMEU after a stoush with a CFMEU organiser, allegedly Mark Hudston.
Well, information has come the way of Rommel to pass onto the Desert Rat.
It appears that a meeting is said to have occurred between Darren Kavanagh, an ALP wannabe, Tim Kecura and Steve McCartney from the Australian Metal Workers Union.
CFMEU Organiser Hudston found out about the meeting and asked to have a follow up meeting with McCartney. At that meeting McCartney said that he was surprisingly approached by both Kavanagh and Kecura and offered a deal.
The deal was said to have gone something like this.
Kavanagh proclaimed that he would be the next State secretary of the CFMEU.
His mate, Kecura was looking to be preselected for a safe ALP Seat.
They asked the AMWU to use their influence to endorse Kecura for a safe seat.
In return, Kavanagh as the future new Secretary of the Union, and Kecura would sideline CFMEU Organisers and stop them from signing Riggers and Scaffolders to join the CFMEU and force them to all join the AMWU.
In short sell out a lot of happy members, who have done extremely well under CFMEU EBA’s and ship them back to the AMWU.
Now it has surfaced that both Kecura (who recently left Slater and Gordon in a hurry) and Kavanagh have joined forces again in a bid to oust Reynolds. It is now revealed they have been part of a long planned coup. One that members of the CFMEU, unbeknownst to them, have been used bargaining chips to further the political ambitions of a couple of rouge operators.
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ReplyDeleteInteresting erwin! Why am I not surprised. Tim is basically a rent seeker who couldn't cut it in a real firm. I thought his 30 pieces of silver would only extend to a cushy union job under Kav. Now I see he is going for the brass ring - incompetent ALP hack in a safe seat (read McGinty). Oh what tangled webs we weave...
ReplyDeleteinteresting indeed St Carmen..as a lawyer he made a great surfer. more interestingly, what reason could Laskaris have for taking the cfmeus hard earned money in many battles in the past and now being a loud out of court barracker for the wannabes?
ReplyDeleteThere's allegations brewing that Kavanagh and his team are receiving donations from some of the newer up and coming builders around town in return for a "softer" union to deal with.
ReplyDeleteAt the expense of whom? The members? Or to carve out a consensurary reputation for himself as a platform to enter politics?
Is Kavanagh a puppet of the left?
Great site. Good to see someone tracking the union election saga.
ReplyDeleteOn that subject, why is Kavanagh taking all the limelight?
Darren Kavanagh sprouted to some blokes over a beer, off the record, that his lieutenant, Dave Simpson has an almost devout hatred of Kevin Reynolds and Joe McDonald. It was said as if we were meant to be impressed with such a statement! Very strange given how much Reynolds has helped Simpson through his career and that McDonald was Simpson’s best friend.
One has to ask, with friends like Simpson, who needs enemies?
There’s a few of us who work at Mirvac Burswood and we sit back and watch with amusement at some of the things going on.
In the West Australian, Kavanagh said that Simpson is now a ‘model’ unionist...inferring that he had changed.
Changed from what we are asking. It was quote, just quietly, that has lost Simpson quite a bit of support. ‘Model Unionist’ = Boss’s Pet.
It's ironic that a prominent Perth journo's pubication in the West is essentailly promtoting a renegade unionist standing against Reynolds who coined her a 'crack whore' and led a group of workers in a chorus of 'crack whore' , 'crack hoare','crack whore',outside the Family Law Courts to the point of driving her to tears.
ReplyDeleteWhomever it was should be in HEATHcote!!!!
Desert Rat, you should really do an update on the CFMEU election goings on.
ReplyDeleteIt is obvious from my insider in the Kavanagh camp that they are going to focus on the so-called cost to members from the Union being engaged in legal battles.( We await with the leaflet on this) One such battle being touted involves Leighton’s over the Mandurah railway line dispute. This is yet to go to court, if it ever does.
My Insider tells me that Kavanagh believes he can get some traction by inferring that it is somehow the fault of the Union that member’s money is being used on fights in the courts.
What they don’t understand is the this Union has fought many court battles in its near 90 year history. If they didn’t, members wouldn’t enjoy what they have today.
Kavanagh is not up to a fight . He is an appeaser. He won’t take on the big end of town.
My insider says that one and maybe another supporter of Kavanagh’s team are ready to pull the plug, unhappy at the direction he is taking (and some clangers’ he has made).
It will be an interesting couple of weeks. Especially for Homer.