Three of Australia’s peak union bodies have called for an urgent safety overhaul at waste management giant Cleanaway Waste Management, citing at least eight worker fatalities recorded at the company since 2021. The Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU), the Transport Workers’ Union (TWU), and the Australian Workers’ Union (AWU) jointly released a statement demanding the company implement enforceable safety reforms before completing a proposed acquisition by Swedish infrastructure investor EQT Infrastructure.

The unions argue that the EQT acquisition — which values Cleanaway at approximately $9 billion — represents a critical window to demand binding safety commitments from incoming ownership. “Worker deaths at Cleanaway are not isolated incidents. They reflect a systemic failure of safety culture and accountability,” ACTU Secretary Sally McManus said in a statement. “Any new ownership must come with a guarantee that worker safety will be the first and highest priority.”

Eight Fatalities in Five Years

According to union data, at least eight Cleanaway workers have died in work-related incidents since 2021. The fatalities have occurred across multiple states and involved a range of hazards including vehicle-related incidents, falls, and incidents during waste processing operations. Safe Work Australia has recorded the waste management sector as one of the highest-risk industries for worker fatalities in Australia, with a fatality rate significantly above the national average.

The TWU has been particularly vocal, noting that many Cleanaway workers operate under precarious subcontracting arrangements that the union says undermine accountability and limit workers’ ability to raise safety concerns without fear of reprisal.

EQT Acquisition and Union Pressure

EQT Infrastructure, a Stockholm-based private equity and infrastructure investor, announced its proposed acquisition of Cleanaway in September 2026. The deal is subject to FIRB (Foreign Investment Review Board) approval and a shareholder vote. Unions have indicated they will engage with the FIRB process to raise their safety concerns.

The AWU has called for EQT to enter into a Workplace Safety Deed — a binding agreement outlining measurable safety targets, independent safety audits, and worker representation in safety governance — as a condition of union support for the transaction.

Company Response

Cleanaway issued a statement acknowledging the fatalities and expressing condolences to affected families. The company said it takes safety “extremely seriously” and has invested in new safety systems and training programs. It declined to comment specifically on the union demands pending completion of the acquisition review process.

Workplace health and safety practitioners are watching the case closely. A binding pre-acquisition safety deed, if agreed to, would represent a novel mechanism in Australian corporate transactions — one that could establish a precedent for how safety obligations are treated in major M&A activity in high-risk sectors.