Murderer was secretly managing business putting workers on mega-project

A labour hire company linked to criminals and drug traffickers which secured Victorian government funding and a major contract on Australia’s biggest federal government-backed wind farm has had its licence torn up after authorities discovered it was also secretly managed by a violent murderer.

Victoria’s Labor Hire Authority cancelled the licence of 24-7 Personnel on Friday, again shutting down a firm in response to revelations by this masthead that it had been profiting from Labor government-backed projects or grants despite deep underworld links.

A major investigation by this masthead last June revealed that 24-7 had, with Australian Workers Union backing, secured lucrative work on the $4 billion federal government-backed Golden Plains Wind Farm venture, despite 24-7’s ties to a convicted drug trafficker and organised-crime figures.

This masthead also detailed how the AWU selected 24-7 to have its operations backed with a $190,000 Allan government grant given to the union to create “meaningful pathways for women while helping employers access a more diverse, skilled workforce”.

On paper, 24-7 was overseen by two females but, in the background, it was managed by a convicted drug trafficker Jarrod Hennig and linked to two other convicted criminals, drug trafficker Osama Elsayed and extortionist Bassem Elsayed.

In response to the reporting, Victoria’s labour hire industry regulator launched an inquiry which, on Friday, led to the cancellation of 24-7’s licence because the company had not declared it was partly managed by another criminal, murderer Jie Zhu.

In 2011, Zhu was sentenced to 19 years in jail with a minimum of 15 years for his “inexplicable” and “unforgivable” actions in stabbing to death a 17-year-old outside a suburban Melbourne service station.

In cancelling 24-7’s licence to operate as a labour hire supplier on Victorian infrastructure projects, the regulator said the company “had failed to declare Jay (Jie) Zhu as a ‘relevant person’ – a senior decision-maker within the business – in breach of the Labour Hire Licensing Act”.

“LHA also found that the company knowingly provided false and misleading information to LHA about Jie Zhu’s role in the business, which is a criminal offence under the act,” it said.

The company is the fifth major labour hire firm targeted by the regulator after this masthead reported they had profited from major government infrastructure projects, including Women in Construction which was revealed by this masthead a fortnight ago was run for years by men with serious criminal convictions.

The Labour Hire Authority has moved to cancel WIC’s licence, although it is still turning over millions of dollars supplying workers to the North East Link.

The authority has also cancelled licences of dozens more smaller labour hire players, although they are mostly not among the about a dozen major operators that carved up the government’s $100 billion Big Build program and which include about eight firms with deep links to underworld figures or corrupt CFMEU officials and which have been exposed in media reporting and targeted by the regulator or police.

Last June, this masthead revealed 24-7’s manager, Jarrod Hennig, had appeared to have sought to hide his background as the head of a drug-trafficking syndicate, using the name Jarrod Morgan to introduce himself and sign company documents, including 24-7’s AWU agreement that helped it win work on the wind farm.

Correspondence from the AWU also showed that his business was the likely beneficiary of taxpayer funding provided to the union. In 2024, the Allan government announced the $191,400 grant to the AWU.

A subsequent AWU newsletter to Victorian members announced the union had won Allan government grant funding to promote the roles of women in the civil construction sector.

“The vision resonated with the decision-makers, and the AWU Vic Branch secured the necessary funding to transform their concept into action,” the newsletter said, naming 24-7 among its “key partners” in the program.

“Recruitment company 24-7 Personnel has embraced the program with remarkable enthusiasm, branding their involvement as ‘Empower 24-7’. What sets this program apart from other initiatives using traditional labor [sic] hire companies is the leadership and commitment of 24-7 Personnel’s two female directors, who will personally participate in the mentoring initiative post-training.”

Last year this masthead also revealed that the company’s two female directors were the partners of Bassem Elsayed and Jarrod Hennig, while the firm’s registered address was the office of a gangland accountant under federal police investigation over unrelated allegations.

At the time, 24-7 insisted it had “no knowledge of or involvement with organised crime at all and is in all respects a well-run small family business”.

This masthead also previously revealed that Hennig, who was jailed for eight years on multiple counts of drug trafficking, had signed AWU enterprise-bargaining agreements secured by 24-7 using his middle name, Morgan.

He was also photographed with Bassem Elsayed and AWU delegates at a lunch at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

The AWU and 24-7 previously declined to respond to questions about how much in total grant funding has been provided to the company through their arrangements with the AWU.

Last year, the AWU’s Victorian secretary Ronnie Hayden also dismissed suggestions the union knew of the company’s criminal associations but said the revelations highlighted a “broader issue” with the use of labour-hire companies on taxpayer-funded projects.

“That’s why I’m calling for reform — specifically, a ban or significant reduction in the use of labour-hire firms on government projects,” he said last June.

There is no suggestion by this masthead that Hayden knew anything of the background of those working behind the scenes of 24-7. As with the Labour Hire Authority, the first Hayden knew of the company’s associations was when it was revealed by the masthead, but two other union delegates were aware of 24-7’s criminal associations.

The Allan government is facing increasing pressure over its handling of the Big Build and related construction industry scandals, with the state opposition accusing it of a cover-up and vowing to call a royal commission if it is elected in November.

Premier Jacinta Allan has repeatedly highlighted the work of the labour hire regulator as evidence of the effectiveness of her response to continuing and mounting revelations of crime and corruption on taxpayer funded projects.

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