FTQ-Construction director Richard Goyette says critics have waged a smear campaign against the union. (CBC)

The construction wing of the Quebec Federation of Labour says it won’t let its reputation be tarnished by the media or politicians.

The union’s director, Richard Goyette, and its lawyer, Robert Laurin, called a news conference Monday to respond to the reporting of workers' allegations of intimidation on construction sites in the province.

For more than an hour, the two men attacked members of the news media, accusing them of sensationalism and promising to take legal action. Laurin said it has become fashionable to criticize FTQ-Construction.

"The problem is that nobody believes us because there are so many … prejudices," Laurin said.

Goyette accused Claudette Carbonneau, president of the rival CSN labour federation, and the opposition Parti Québécois of participating in a smear campaign against the union.

Goyette and Laurin defended the federation and its construction branch against allegations of collusion with political parties. But Goyette continued to reject workers' calls for a public inquiry into allegations of collusion and corruption within the construction industry. An inquiry would only become a circus he said, adding he doesn’t intend to become a clown.

Last Wednesday, Quebec Public Security Minister Jacques Dupuis ordered a provincial police investigation into allegations of intimidation and threats at construction sites in the North Shore region.

Goyette denied the FTQ holds a monopoly in the North Shore region, saying the union doesn’t represent mechanics and plumbers, for example. FTQ union president Michel Arsenault earlier denied there were problems in the region.

The labour leaders' comments came after Radio-Canada broadcast a recording of a union representative seemingly threatening workers who were not members of the FTQ.

On Thursday, provincial police issued an arrest warrant on fraud charges for Goyette’s predecessor as director of the FTQ, Jocelyn Dupuis.

Dupuis made headlines last March when it was discovered he ran up massive expense bills for food and drink. He claimed $125,000 over six months, according to expense reports and receipts obtained at the time by CBC/Radio-Canada.

In October, the province announced the creation of a specialized squad to oversee an investigation into allegations of collusion and corruption in the construction industry — Opération Marteau, which is French for Operation Hammer.

With files from The Canadian Press