The Banksia Hill Walk-Off
Introduction
In early March, dozens of prison officers at Banksia Hill Detention Centre went on strike for five hours to demand safer working conditions and higher staffing levels. Understaffing at Banksia Hill has led to rolling lockdowns and unsafe conditions for both prison staff and young people in detention.
Current Staffing Situation
The poor conditions at Banksia Hill Detention centre not only affects its child detainees but also its staff members. As of Thursday 9 March, the ABC reported that dozens of staff members walked off the job in response to safety concerns following a staff member being seriously injured and requiring surgery. The strike was triggered by “another insufficient offer” from the Department of Justice addressing staff concerns, which ultimately resulted in less than half the required custodial officers being present on the job.
Impact of Staffing Issues
Banksia Hill’s staffing issues have led to youth offenders being held in their cell for 23 hours a day. Banksia Hill has previously been under scrutiny for this inhumane treatment of children, which the was the Supreme Court declared unlawful in August 2022. The crisis extends to other detention centres, in which a Perth man on remand was in lockdown for 23 hours a day at Hakea Prison and was then in solitary confinement for 15 days at Casuarina Prison due to staffing shortages. Peter Collier, WA’s shadow Corrective Services Minister, noted that “something needs to be done because quite frankly we have a system in chaos at the moment.”
Case Study: VYZ v Department of Justice: Steven
In 2022, the Supreme Court of Western Australia ruled that rolling lockdowns and solitary confinement in the Banksia Hill Youth Detention Centre were unlawful.
Plaintiff VYZ, a fifteen-year-old boy at the time of the verdict, was locked in his cell for 70 of 72 hours over three days in early February 2022. Chronic staff shortages meant that the custodial officers used rolling lockdowns. He was kept in the Intensive Support Unit where he was kept, a box with windows screwed shut and no fresh air. These conditions are enough to cause mental harm to anyone.
The WA Government’s Stance
The Premier continues to be questioned on how he is handling the Banksia Hill crisis, with further concerns for how he is ensuring staff safety. Despite pledging to spend an extra $63 million on security, staffing and mental health support at Banksia Hill, he has been reprimanded as throwing figures around to avoid the real question of how he is going to fix the system. Roughly $22 million has been promised towards expanding staffing at Banksia Hill, including a recruitment package and retention initiatives.
Alternatives?
WAJA continues to advocate for viable alternatives for these crises. At the root of these issues is the fact that young people continue to be detained in Banksia Hill from ages as low as 10. The evidence is overwhelmingly clear that we need to Raise the Age.
However, raising the age of criminal responsibility is just one part of the issue. WAJA supports Social Reinvestment WA’s Blueprint for a Better Future, a model proposing a whole of government approach to protect the most vulnerable members of our community. Additionally, early intervention and reintegration programs that are collaborated by the community and the Western Australian Police have proved to be a more effective step towards rehabilitation than detention.
References
Rebecca Trigger, Kate Christian, and Keane Bourke, ‘Youth prison guards walk off job at Banksia Hill Detention Centre as industrial dispute escalates,’ ABC News (online, 9 March 2023) Youth prison guards walk off job at Banksia Hill Detention Centre as industrial dispute escalates - ABC News
David Weber, ‘Perth man on remand spends 15 days isolated at Casuarina Prison amid COVID-19 restrictions’ ABC News (online, 13 March 2023) <https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-03-13/perth-man-on-remand-15-days-in-isolation-solitary-casuarina-jail/102076150>
Aboriginal Legal Service WA, ‘Supreme Court of WA Declares that Lockdowns at Banksia Hill Detention Centre are Unlawful’ (Media Release, 25 August 2022) <https://www.als.org.au/supreme-court-declares-lockdowns-at-banksia-hill-unlawful/>
VYZ by Next Friend XYZ v Chief Executive Officer of the Department of Justice [2022] WASC 274.
Rebecca Le May, ‘Prominent West Australians give blistering critique of McGowan’s Banksia Hill response’ The West Australian (online, 21 January 2023) https://thewest.com.au/politics/state-politics/prominent-west-australians-give-blistering-critique-of-mcgowans-banksia-hill-response-c-9497246
Hamish Hastie, ‘Child Commissioner says Mark McGowan’s rhetoric ‘demonises children, makes public feel unsafe’’ WAToday, (online, 20 January 2023) https://www.watoday.com.au/politics/western-australia/child-commissioner-says-mark-mcgowan-s-rhetoric-demonises-children-makes-public-feel-unsafe-20230118-p5cdm4.html.
Hamish Hastie, ‘McGowan accuses activists of ‘not listening’ after $63 million youth detention promise’ WAToday, (online, 28 November 2022) https://www.watoday.com.au/national/mcgowan-accuses-activists-of-not-listening-after-63-million-youth-detention-promise-20221128-p5c1vg.html.