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The Construction, Forestry and Maritime Employees Union (CFMEU) is the largest union in construction, forestry, maritime, textile, clothing and footwear production. The CFMEU is affiliated with the Australian Council of Trade Unions and the Australian Labor Party. The CFMEU has offices in all capital cities in Australia and in many major regional centres with the national office of the union being in Melbourne. Before the 2018 merger, the CFMEU had an estimated 120,000 members and employed around 400 full time staff and officials. In March 2018, a two year long process ended resulting in a merger between the old CFMEU, the Maritime Union of Australia and the Textile, Clothing and Footwear Union of Australia. The new CFMEU had a membership of approximately 144,000, 1% of the Australian workforce, with combined assets of $310 million and annual revenue of approximately $146 million.

The CFMEU is structured into four divisions, each operating largely autonomously. Each division has its own discrete set of rules. Members of divisions are also divided into either districts or branches. Elections for office positions within the organisation, for which the term of office is four years, are predominantly conducted by the AEC. The Mining and Energy Division, however, holds exemptions from having their elections conducted by the AEC and from the postal ballot provisions under the RO Act. The supreme governing body is the National Conference, which consists of members of each divisional executive. There is also a national executive, National Executive Committee, Divisional Conferences and Divisional Executives.

The Construction and General Division was formed in the early 1990s with the creation of the national CFMEU. The creation of a single building union had been a policy objective of various building unions for decades with records showing the Queensland Branch of the Operative Painters and Decorators Union (OPDU) carried resolutions calling for a single industry union to be created as early as the 1920s. The rationale behind this policy position was the logical view that members would be better represented by a larger industry based union rather than the traditional craft unions. The largest amalgamating union, the Building Workers' Industrial Union (BWIU) was itself the result of numerous amalgamations over several decades between 1946 and 1992. The coverage of the BWIU included numerous craft unions representing building tradespeople including bricklayers, carpenters, plasterers, tilers, stonemasons and various skilled non trades construction workers. In the late 1980s the BWIU increased its coverage to include other construction workers such as steel fixers, concreters, construction labourers and trades assistants following the de registration of the Builders Labourers Federation (BLF). The division also has members working off site in manufacturing workplaces such as shopfitting workshops, joinery shops and other establishments involved in the pre fabrication of materials used in the construction process. Members also work in brick, tile and pottery manufacturing and in Queensland, the union covers furnishing trades as there is no formal Forestry Division in the State, due to the Australian Workers' Union's historical coverage of this industry. The Queensland Branch does, however have a presence in Queensland's forestry sector with CFMEU members employed by the State Government working for the Department of Primary Industries. With the absorption of the Federated Engine Drivers and Firemen's Association of Australasia (FEDFA) which had coverage of crane drivers, plant operators, and other construction workers, the Construction and General Division has moved closer to fulfilling the policy objective of creating a single industry union for construction workers.

The CFMEU is one of the most powerful unions in the Labor Left faction of the Australian Labor Party. The Construction Division is often associated with the left faction of the Australian labour movement, but during the 2010 Federal election the CFMEU and AMWU donated a total of $60,000 to the Greens. Each State division operates with autonomy, which results in differing services being offered to members. The NSW Branch of the CFMEU General and Construction Division has an estimated 5,000 members and the Victorian Branch around 9,500. In August 2010, the CFMEU donated over $1.2 million to political activist group GetUp! to pay for TV airtime for a women's rights ad spot condemning Tony Abbott and the Liberal Party. In the 2013 Election, the CFMEU donated $50,000 to the Greens party in the ACT. In 2019, the construction division donated $100,000 to the 2019–20 Australian bushfire season recovery effort.

The CFMMEU Forestry and Furnishing Products Division was first registered as a Federal Organisation 21 August 1907, as the Federated Sawmill, Timber yard and Woodworkers Employees Association of Australasia. The Union's name was changed in 1913 to the Amalgamated Timber Workers Union of Australia, and again in 1918 to the Australian Timber Workers Union. In late 1990 a ballot was conducted by members of the Australian Timber Workers Union and the Pulp and Paper Workers Federation of Australia endorsing the amalgamation of both Unions to form the Australian Timber and Allied Industries Union. Another ballot was conducted in mid 1991 on the amalgamation between the Australian Timber and Allied Industries Union and the Building Workers Industrial Union. This endorsement supported the first stage in the development of what is now the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union. The Forest and Furnishing Products Division represents 20,000 members nationally. In March 2018 (after amalgamating with the TCFUA), CFMEU Forestry and Furnishing Products Division became the CFMEU Manufacturing Division.

The Maritime Union of Australia Division consists of the amalgamated Maritime Union of Australia. As of 2017, the division represents 16,000 workers associated with Australian ports.

In September 2019, the MUA division announced that it would go on strike during the global Climate Strike during September 20, being "the first known instance of workers taking industrial action to attend the rallies". In July 2023, CFMEU announced a campaign for a super profits tax to address Australia's affordable housing crisis, with National Secretary Zach Smith telling the National Press Club in Australia that a 40 percent tax on excess profits would raise the billions of dollars to build social and affordable housing.

In the 2018 Victorian Election, the Maritime Union of Australia Division donated an unknown amount to the Victorian Socialists campaign.

In 2001, the Howard government set up the Royal Commission into the Building and Construction Industry (commonly known as the Cole Royal Commission). The Commission and its findings were largely condemned by the Labor Party and the Greens which argued that the terms of reference were too narrow. The CFMEU asserted that the purpose of the Commission was a "witch hunt" to reduce the power of the CFMEU rather than to investigate crime. The General and Construction Division of the union stopped some corruption within the union. Justice Cole found 392 cases of unlawful conduct; 98 cases were passed on to prosecution authorities by the Commonwealth Attorney General, of which 26 were considered breaches of criminal law. As a result of the Commission's findings the Howard government established the Office of the Australian Building and Construction Commissioner (commonly known as the ABCC) in 2005. It had a wide range of powers, including compelling testimony under oath, with penalties of up to $22,000 for individuals and $110,000 for corporations and unions apply for breaches of the Building and Construction Industry Improvement Act 2005. The ABCC was abolished in 2012 by the Gillard government and was replaced by the Fair Work Building and Construction. In 2015 the Abbott government attempted to reinstate the ABCC, but the legislation failed to pass the two houses of Parliament. A further attempt to pass the legislation was unsuccessfully made by the Turnbull government in March 2016. After the two failed attempts to reintroduce the ABCC, in December 2016 Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull called the double dissolution 2016 federal election. Following the election, the reelected Turnbull government was successful in reinstating the ABCC with the vote of Senators Pauline Hanson's One Nation, Nick Xenophon Team and Derryn Hinch. Under WorkChoices, situations where industrial action could take place were reduced. The CFMEU and workers had to prove a workplace was unsafe to put a stop to work on a site which has not happened to date.

During 2011 and 2012, BHP Coal and its employees were negotiating about a new enterprise agreement to apply to BHP Coal's operations at various mines, including the Saraji mine. For the purpose of supporting or advancing their claims, employees of BHP Coal took protected industrial action in the form of work stoppages and overtime bans. There was a seven day work stoppage between 15 and 22 February 2012. During this stoppage, members of the CFMEU who were employed at the Saraji mine, including Mr Doevendans, participated in protests beside the road leading into the mine property. Standing behind barriers BHP Coal had erected at the side of the road, the protesters held up signs which the CFMEU had provided and waved the signs at those who were driving into the mine. The signs were directly or indirectly critical of BHP Coal and of those who were driving into the mine. On four occasions over three days, Mr Doevendans held up a sign that read: "No principles Scabs No guts." Some employees of BHP Coal complained to management about the scabs sign. Following some interactions with management, Mr Doevendans' employment with BHP was terminated. On appeal to the High Court of Australia, it was held that the dismissal of Mr Doevendans was permissible under the Fair Work Act 2009. In late 2015, the Maritime Union of Australia and CFMEU entered into merger talks to create 'Australia's most powerful union'. On 29 February 2016 at the MUA national conference, delegates voted unanimously in favour of negotiations for a merger with the CFMEU. In August 2017, the Turnbull government introduced tough new laws targeting the CFMEU, with broad powers to deregister unions, disqualify officials and block unions from merging if they repeatedly breach industrial laws. The proposed law failed to pass the Senate. The Fair Work Commission approved the merger in March 2018 of the CFMEU, MUA and the Textile, Clothing and Footwear Union of Australia (TCFUA). The merger had been opposed by business groups, including Master Builders Australia, and by the federal government. The appeal was dismissed in December.