Qld youth detention officers facing ‘extreme violence’ at work, AWU says

Queensland youth detention workers are at risk of snapped arms, broken jaws, death threats, and disfigurement unless these ‘eight common sense actions’ are put in place, a union says.

Queensland youth detention employees are at risk of snapped arms, broken jaws, death threats, and disfigurement while at work, with workers claiming the Minister responsible has failed to implement “eight common sense actions” that would help protect front line officers.

Australian Workers Union members believe the state government has a ‘casual attitude’ toward the ‘extreme violence’ inflicted on staff, and that existing reporting processes put the onus on workers to report physical and mental abuse.

In the six month period between October 1 2021 and March 31, 2022, there were 190 assaults on youth detention staff of which 38 per cent were spitting offences and 26 per cent were punches.

The entrance to the Brisbane Youth Detention Centre at Wacol. Picture: NCA NewWire / Dan Peled

‘Our members are subjected to hitting and kicking, spitting, stabbing, grievous bodily harm and threats of death and sexual violence on a daily basis,” AWU Secretary Stacey Schinnerl said.

In late July, representatives from our union met with the Minister in good faith to present eight commonsense actions the department could take today to make these centres a safer place to work.

The recommendations included fixing hiring practices and advertisements so applicants have a clear understanding of what the job entails before they are onboarded, automatic reporting of serious assault to the Queensland Police Service for investigation, and capping the number of youth offenders entering youth detention centres to ensure a safe worker/youth offender ratio of 1:4 is met.

“Months have passed and almost none of these items have been addressed and all the while, workers continue to be assaulted on a daily basis in Queensland’s youth detention centres,” Ms Schinnerl said.

Stacey Schinnerl from the Australian Workers Union. Picture: Australian Workers' Union Queensland Branch/Facebook

“Our members are decent people who have entered this profession for the right reasons, but when you begin work as a youth detention worker, it is a reasonable expectation that you will end up in hospital at some point in your career.”

The AWU met again with Minister Linard in September but said they were disappointed to learn that most of their recommendations had not yet been actioned, with Ms Schinnerl adding that the burden on staff had reached “boiling point.”

“So much more can be done to address safety issues in these workplaces that can be absorbed within the current budget, with an example in ending the use of metal cutlery by youth offenders in the Brisbane and West Moreton Youth Detention Centre,” she said.

“The fact that our members are being asked to hand out metal knives to these youth offenders at meal times is madness – this practice must end.”

In a statement to The Courier-Mail, Minister for Children and Youth Justice Leanne Linard said any violence against youth detention facility staff was “completely unacceptable,” and that the department “are always looking to improve the way we do things.”

“Alleged assaults on staff are treated as a matter of priority and referred to the police shortly after an incident for thorough investigation.

“As a well-established principle of youth detention, young people are held accountable for their behaviour.”

While Minister Linard said the department had already progressed “many” of the proposals, the AWU claims only two of the eight – fixing hiring processes and advertisements to reflect the reality of the job, and more mental health first aid and training for staff and more wellness officers in centres – have been partially met, and none have been fully implemented.

‘We are calling on the Department to immediately implement these eight measures – workers can’t wait another day, another week or another year,” Ms Schinnerl said.

“Any youth justice reform must hold workers‘ safety in these centres as a top priority.”