Jail terms on table in union crackdown Unions that picket construction sites will be liable for fines worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. Photo: Karleen Minney The reintroduction of a beefed-up national construction watchdog by the Abbott government will see individuals picketing building sites at risk of being fined up to $34,000. Opponents of the controversial east-west link freeway under Carlton warned on Thursday the new laws could be used to quash legitimate opposition to the project. The Abbott government on Thursday introduced legislation to reinstate the Australian Building and Construction Commission. Its tough new powers will see people who refuse to co-operate with the building watchdog facing up to six months in jail. Individuals who picket construction sites will face fines of up to $34,000. A separate bill introduced on Thursday stiffens penalties for organisations including unions and makes officials who commit serious crimes liable to jail for up to five years. Business groups strongly support the construction industry crackdown, promised by the Coalition before the election. But the new laws would treat Australian citizens "as if we were a police state," opposition workplace relations spokesman Brendan O'Connor warned, saying they would "impinge on basic civil rights." Labor and the Greens will oppose the construction commission's reinstatement, meaning the bill will not pass the Senate until next July. The former Labor government abolished the ABCC amid complaints from unions over its coercive powers and different treatment of one industry. It was replaced by the Fair Work Building Industry Inspectorate. The legislation was introduced to Parliament on Thursday by Christopher Pyne, who said it targeted unlawful industrial action, unlawful picketing and coercion and discrimination. Mr Pyne argued the lawless culture of the building industry required special laws.