Justice Minister dismisses prison officer union reports of violence

Tasmania’s Justice Minister has denied union claims of inmate assaults saying prison staffing levels are up.

CROWDED, understaffed jails are putting prison officers’ safety at risk, their union says, but their claims of inmate assaults are being denied by Justice Minister Elise Archer.

United Voice Tasmania secretary Janette Armstrong said Hobart Reception Prison is at 131 per cent capacity and Risdon Prison Complex at 105 per cent. She said no action had been taken to address chronic understaffing, meaning prisoners spent more time in cells.

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“There was one serious assault on an officer just before Christmas and then there were two assault incidents on officers between Christmas and New Year,” she said.

“For the Minister to remain silent in the face of that, and not reach out to the people involved, not reach out to the unions to make sure our members and their staff are OK, is really, really disappointing.”

Ms Archer, however, said Tasmania Prison Service was operating below capacity.

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“Where there is a temporary spike in prisoner numbers in certain units, multiple beds have been temporarily placed in cells, both of which are appropriately designed,” she said.

“Since May 2016 an additional 119 correctional officers have already been recruited with this recruitment process continuing to increase staff. Approximately 38 new staff have also been selected from the latest recruitment round who will commence training on 20 January 2020. In total, it is expected 90 new correctional officers will be recruited by the end of the year.”

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Ms Archer said there had been a decrease in serious assaults on officers and there had been no assaults over the Christmas-New Year period.

Labor spokeswoman Ella Haddad said staff morale was low. She said a “damning report” from the Auditor-General last year showed the Government’s policies had significantly raised the number of inmates, without a corresponding lift in correctional staff.

“Constant overcrowding in the prison puts at risk the safety of staff and inmates,” she said. “Between Christmas and New Year alone, correctional officers have dealt with multiple assaults on staff, including an incident where a correctional officer was taken to hospital. As well, there have been many incidents of violence between inmates.”