Director of the Fair Work Building Industry Inspectorate v Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union

The Director of the Fair Work Building Industry Inspectorate (the Director) brought proceedings against the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) in the Federal Court of Australia. The dispute concerned allegations that the CFMEU had contravened section 346 of the *Fair Work Act 2009* (Cth) by engaging in conduct that hindered or obstructed a person exercising a right of entry under the Act. Specifically, the Director alleged that CFMEU officials had unreasonably delayed and obstructed an inspector from entering a construction site.

The primary legal issue before the Court was whether the actions of the CFMEU officials constituted a contravention of section 346 of the *Fair Work Act 2009* (Cth). This required the Court to determine whether the conduct of the officials in delaying and questioning the inspector's right of entry, and ultimately preventing entry for a period, amounted to hindering or obstructing the inspector in the exercise of their statutory right of entry.

Judge Manousaridis found that the CFMEU officials' conduct did indeed contravene section 346 of the *Fair Work Act 2009* (Cth). The Court reasoned that the right of entry conferred by the Act is a substantive right, and any unreasonable impediment to its exercise constitutes an obstruction. The officials' actions, including demanding to see the inspector's credentials multiple times and engaging in prolonged questioning that delayed entry, were found to be more than a reasonable inquiry and amounted to an unlawful hindrance. The Court emphasised that while inspectors must comply with reasonable requests, the actions taken by the CFMEU officials went beyond what was reasonable and were designed to prevent or significantly delay the inspector's lawful entry.