NSW Confirms Privatization of Prisons
The New South Wales, Australia, government has confirmed it will privatise Sydney’s Parklea jail and the Hunter region’s Cessnock prison in a move that has further enraged prison officers.
About 1000 officers gathered outside NSW Parliament about two weeks ago to protest against the government plans, which they say will compromise the safety of staff and inmates. With the plans given the green light today, officers are already planning more industrial action, the NSW Public Services Association (PSA) said. The Government’s decision forms part of The Way Forward workplace reform strategies that were originally announced in August after overtime payments hit $43 million a year – more than double the budgeted $20 million.
The contracts for Parklea and Cessnock will be filed within the next seven to nine months, NSW Commissioner of Corrective Services Ron Woodham said. Mr Woodham assured staff that no one would lose their jobs under the reforms and added that prison officers working in contracted jails would not suffer increased risks.
But the PSA’s general secretary John Cahill, who received the news by phone from Mr Woodham, said the move posed serious safety concerns for prison staff and inmates. “There’s always pressure on them to cut costs and the main way they do this is by cutting staffing levels. (This) makes it more dangerous for the officers and more dangerous for the prisoners – one of the prison officer’s duties is to prevent attacks from one prisoner on another – and increases the likelihood of escapes so it’s a danger to the community generally.”
More information at The Australian.
Australasia, Australia, INTERNATIONAL, New South Wales, Private Prisons