The Fair Work Ombudsman has secured a total of $657,105 in penalties against the Mining and Energy Union and five individuals for conduct during an industrial dispute at the Oaky Creek North coal mine in 2017.

The Federal Court found the Fair Work Act was breached when the following conduct was undertaken:

• verbally abusing (or inciting verbal abuse) and filming workers going to and from work at the Oaky Creek underground coal mine, north-west of Emerald, on multiple occasions in 2017;
• publishing derogatory material on Facebook about some Oaky Creek workers, also in that year;
• encouraging or inciting, in 2017, the publishing of a list of “Oaky North scabs” on Facebook and not taking it down until early 2018; and
• putting up “scab signs” naming specific workers on the roadside near the mine.

Employees were undertaking protected industrial action during negotiations for a new enterprise agreement when the actions happened.

The total penalties are the largest the Fair Work Ombudsman has secured in relation to breaches of section 348 of the Fair Work Act which makes coercion in respect of industrial activity unlawful.

Justice Darryl Rangiah found the respondents’ conduct was meant to intimidate the workers and to do so, “aggressive and offensive” language had been used at the protests such as “f***ing scab”, “maggot” and “dirty rat”.

Justice Rangiah said workers were verbally abused on their way to and from work each day. The verbal abuse was often yelled through loudspeakers by protestors situated on the only road in and out of the mine.

“The repeated, sustained and violent nature of the abuse would have had a detrimental effect on the mental wellbeing of the workers,” he said.

“The respondents’ intent in engaging in such intimidating and threatening conduct was to bring about what they perceived to be a favourable industrial outcome. They did so in circumstances where they at least ought to have known that such conduct was unlawful.”

The court has imposed penalties of $535,500 against the MEU, and penalties against five officials of what was then the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union (prior to the demerger of that union).

At the time of the conduct, the five officials held the following positions:

• Stephen Smyth, president of the Queensland District Branch of the Mining and Energy Division (fined $85,680);
• Chris Brodsky, vice president of the Queensland District Branch of the Mining and Energy Division (fined $10,710);
• Brodie Brunker, Broadmeadow Mine Lodge assistant secretary (fined $5355)
• Jade Ingham, branch assistant secretary of the Queensland and Northern Territory Construction and General Branch of the Construction and General Division (fined $12,930); and
• Blake Hynes, delegate of the Queensland and Northern Territory Construction and General Branch of the Construction and General Division (fined $6930).

The MEU has been further ordered to pay $10,000 in compensation to one worker who had been verbally abused and subject to derogatory social media material as well as signs calling him a “scab”.

Fair Work Ombudsman Anna Booth said the significant court penalties affirmed the seriousness of breaching the law with respect to coercion.

“This case highlights the line in the sand that must not be crossed,” Ms Booth said.

“Australia’s enterprise bargaining system enshrines a right to take protected industrial action to leverage union claims, but unions must stop short of the aggressive intimidation tactics seen in this case – both in-person and online – which hurt other workers.

“No one should be subject to aggression or abuse for exercising their rights to freedom of association. There is simply no place for unlawful intimidatory and threatening conduct against a worker choosing to go to work.

“A person has the right to take part or not take part in industrial activity. The rights of all workers and employers must be respected.”