Announcement of private gaol at Grafton - Public Service Association

Announcement of private gaol at Grafton

Announcement of private gaol at Grafton June 2015 (PDF version)

The recent announcement by the NSW Government that they will build a new gaol in a private public partnership in the Grafton area has left all NSW Prison Officers with a nasty taste in their mouth.

The announcement comes after an extended period of reform and co-operation by every Prison Officer in the NSW system.

The PSA has also been lobbying for the reopening of Grafton gaol for some time.

This would see an immediate doubling of the existing number of beds and go some way towards easing the current overcrowding in the state’s prisons.

The PSA were in Grafton on Monday 22 June discussing the appropriate staffing for the reopening of Grafton, albeit not to full capacity at this stage.

The construction of the private facility is likely to take four or more years.

The PSA is committed to fighting the privatisation of any prison, be it a new prison or any other current correctional facility.

Between now and the announcement of any contract, the Association will seek urgent discussions with the Minister and the Deputy Premier, the two key figures at the centre of this issue.

Delegates at Grafton and members have met and considered a proposal by Corrective Services NSW to increase the operation of the current Grafton Transit Centre.

Members of the Grafton Sub-Branch have indicated that they are reasonably supportive of the notion to increase the operations of that Centre.

The Management Committee of the Prison Officers Vocational Branch (POVB) will meet in Sydney on Monday, 29 June 2015 and all options and proposals in relation to Grafton will be discussed and considered.

An action plan will then be put to the Executive of the PSA and to the members of the POVB.

The POVB and the PSA will continue to fight privatisation and the loss of public sector jobs to private industry.


Steve McMahon
Chairman | Prison Officers Vocational Branch

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