NSW Split of Forestry, Building and Mining Divisions from the CFMEU

Industrial Relations Amendment (De-amalgamation) Bill 2025

27 Nov 2025: Passed by Parliament and signed off by the governor.

This bill kicks in: TBA

Legislative Assembly

Legislative Council

Assent

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Topics

asset transfer industrial relations labor organizations organizational restructuring trade unions

Introduced by: The Hon Sophie Cotsis MP (ALP); The Hon Daniel Mookhey MLC (ALP)

Links to official parliament websites

Official page: progress through parliament

Official page: bill text and explanatory notes

Effects of this bill

If this bill passes, it means that:

Specific CFMEU NSW divisions are now subject to withdrawal and reconstitution rules.
The committee of management for the Manufacturing Division can apply to withdraw the Forestry, Furnishing, Building Products and Manufacturing Division.
The Industrial Court can make orders to manage the withdrawal; it can also decide how a withdrawn division becomes a State organisation.
Assets and liabilities of a withdrawn division transfer automatically to the new State organisation.
The State organisation and CFMEU NSW must implement new rules on the withdrawal date.
Entities operating under these rules are immune from liability for breach of contract or confidence.

The Debate

What different members said when this bill was debated:

Damien Tudehope LIB

“On behalf of the Opposition, I contribute to debate on the Industrial Relations Amendment (De-amalgamation) Bill 2025. Members who support the right to freedom of association must logically support a complementary right to not associate.”

Official source →

Chris Rath LIB

“I cannot help but speak in support of the Industrial Relations Amendment (De-amalgamation) Bill 2025, which will lead to further disintegration of the CFMEU. My only concern is that this bill does not go far enough. It would have been good to see the complete abolition of the CFMEU.”

Official source →

Mark Buttigieg ALP

“In particular, I thank the Hon. Damien Tudehope and the Hon. Chris Rath. The bill before the House has one overriding purpose: to enable de-amalgamated divisions federally to de-amalgamate within the State registered union and become standalone unions following the amalgamation.”

Official source →

News articles and press releases

Industrial Relations Amendment (De-amalgamation) Bill 2025

Ms SOPHIE COTSIS, Minister for Industrial Relations — 2025-09-10

Before providing an overview of the bill, I should stress that the bill is not aimed at any other union and only provides for the de-amalgamation of the Mining and Energy Division and the Forestry, Furnishing, Building Products and Manufacturing Division from the New South Wales registered branch of the CFMEU NSW. The objective of the Industrial Relations Amendment (De-amalgamation) Bill 2025 is to amend the IR Act to make provisions for the de-amalgamation of the CFMEU into separate unions. The bill does this by inserting a new schedule 7 into the Act that provides for the withdrawal of the Forestry, Furnishing, Building Products and Manufacturing Division and the Mining and Energy Division from the CFMEU NSW.