Latest / 360 with Katie Woolf / Katie spoke with Community and Public Sector Union NT Regional Secretary Kay Densley about staff assaults at Don Dale

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Katie spoke with Community and Public Sector Union NT Regional Secretary Kay Densley about staff assaults at Don Dale · 360 with Katie Woolf

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Obviously the report on the front page of the paper
• 0:02
  Speaker 1: this morning. It's pretty frightening stuff. There are fears by
• 0:07
  Speaker 1: some of our detention center staff, those youth detention center staff,
• 0:10
  Speaker 1: that someone could be killed amid what they're saying is
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: an escalation in violence. Kay, talk us through how the
• 0:17
  Speaker 1: staff out there are feeling at the moment.
• 0:22
  Speaker 2: Well, well, Katie, from the members that I've spoken to,
• 0:26
  Speaker 2: you know, it is a war zone and there are concerns.
• 0:29
  Speaker 2: We met urgently with management and our health and safety
• 0:33
  Speaker 2: reps there this on Monday. Management couldn't clearly articulate what
• 0:38
  Speaker 2: they're doing differently, and they denied that safety procedures, a
• 0:42
  Speaker 2: minimum staffing procedures or staffing levels were a problem. So
• 0:48
  Speaker 2: we suspect that they are not meeting safe staffing levels
• 0:52
  Speaker 2: and safe practices and this is contributing to staff being hurt.
• 0:56
  Speaker 2: So we need urgent action from the regular later and
• 1:00
  Speaker 2: from management to invest investigating this. There's been a number
• 1:05
  Speaker 2: of serious act incidents also this week. We talked to
• 1:10
  Speaker 2: them on Monday about the incident on Saturday where someone
• 1:15
  Speaker 2: was actually knocked out one of the workers and there
• 1:20
  Speaker 2: are eleven staff on that day, so.
• 1:24
  Speaker 3: Yeah, knocked out.
• 1:27
  Speaker 2: Yeah, what happened, well, was attacked by by a young person.
• 1:38
  Speaker 3: My goodness, this.
• 1:39
  Speaker 2: Is happening far too often and they need to do
• 1:44
  Speaker 2: something about it.
• 1:46
  Speaker 1: Okay, So on Monday you said, or was it last weekend,
• 1:50
  Speaker 1: that somebody was actually knocked out out there by a
• 1:53
  Speaker 1: young person while at work at don Dale.
• 1:57
  Speaker 2: That's true, yep, And I understand that may have somebody
• 2:00
  Speaker 2: who's told me that that happened just a day or
• 2:03
  Speaker 2: so ago as well. So you know, obviously we're talking
• 2:08
  Speaker 2: with our health and safety reps. We've talked to management.
• 2:13
  Speaker 2: I don't we don't see what they're putting into place
• 2:16
  Speaker 2: to fix this mess. There's already quite a number of
• 2:21
  Speaker 2: staff who are off injured, and my understanding is it's
• 2:26
  Speaker 2: around thirty or more. So, uh, we just can't just
• 2:31
  Speaker 2: can't keep happening. People need a safe workplace in there.
• 2:35
  Speaker 2: They obviously need to care for the young people as well.
• 2:37
  Speaker 2: But yeah, I'm hearing that. Yeah, they're being threatened that
• 2:43
  Speaker 2: they're going to kill them almost on a daily basis.
• 2:47
  Speaker 1: Okay, Can I just ask you, is that person that
• 2:49
  Speaker 1: got knocked out? And then you've said that you believe
• 2:52
  Speaker 1: that there was also an incident a couple of days
• 2:54
  Speaker 1: ago as well.
• 2:56
  Speaker 3: Are those people okay?
• 2:59
  Speaker 2: Yeah, So if they're members, then I find out about it. Obviously,
• 3:02
  Speaker 2: I speak to them so and make sure that they're
• 3:09
  Speaker 2: claimed workers, comp that they're okay, et cetera. So I
• 3:14
  Speaker 2: have spoken to that person on Saturday, but I haven't
• 3:16
  Speaker 2: spoken to the other people that I've heard have been
• 3:20
  Speaker 2: injured as well. So the union's always here to hear
• 3:25
  Speaker 2: about that. I always ask people what can be put
• 3:28
  Speaker 2: in place to make sure this doesn't happen again. What
• 3:32
  Speaker 2: they need at the moment is experienced workers and more workers.
• 3:35
  Speaker 2: So I understand there's another recruitment process happening where people
• 3:40
  Speaker 2: are being trained at the moment, but I don't think
• 3:43
  Speaker 2: it's enough.
• 3:44
  Speaker 3: So yeah, okay, you did say as well this.
• 3:48
  Speaker 1: Did you say there's thirty or more staff at the
• 3:51
  Speaker 1: moment who are not at work due to injury?
• 3:54
  Speaker 2: That's my understanding.
• 3:55
  Speaker 3: Yes, are we talking about injuries as a result of
• 3:58
  Speaker 3: being assaulted.
• 4:00
  Speaker 2: Yes, we are.
• 4:02
  Speaker 1: Thirty or more staff that cannot go to work because
• 4:05
  Speaker 1: they've been injured in the workplace out at dawn Dale.
• 4:10
  Speaker 2: That's my understanding.
• 4:11
  Speaker 1: Yet, kay, I know that this data that's been obtained
• 4:14
  Speaker 1: by the NT News does show that there were twenty
• 4:17
  Speaker 1: nine assaults against offices between August twenty two and October
• 4:20
  Speaker 1: twenty three, including eleven that resulted in injury. I mean
• 4:24
  Speaker 1: that obviously those figures then will pale in comparison to
• 4:28
  Speaker 1: what you've said about thirty staff being on leave.
• 4:32
  Speaker 2: Yes, exactly, and some of them I think a longer term.
• 4:36
  Speaker 2: But yeah, the whole thing is that they need to
• 4:39
  Speaker 2: make sure that there's consequences for the action of these
• 4:44
  Speaker 2: young people. So what I'm hearing is, you know, they're
• 4:48
  Speaker 2: quite brave and egg each other on, and yeah, there
• 4:53
  Speaker 2: is a Use Justice Act obviously that they have to
• 4:55
  Speaker 2: abide by, but there doesn't seem to be consequences for
• 4:58
  Speaker 2: them to do anything. Our members are actually getting them
• 5:02
  Speaker 2: charged with assaults, but that just adds on to a
• 5:05
  Speaker 2: sentence authority there. So yeah, there what they need is
• 5:11
  Speaker 2: the numbers of staff there for the risk of the detainees,
• 5:14
  Speaker 2: and some safe practices about locking and unlocking, and some
• 5:18
  Speaker 2: consequences for the young people if they do these things.
• 5:22
  Speaker 1: Okay, if there isn't some changes made, what is your fear.
• 5:28
  Speaker 2: Well, I actually fear that someone's going to be critically
• 5:32
  Speaker 2: injured and that your staff are feeling unsafe even to
• 5:37
  Speaker 2: go to work. Uh, and that shouldn't happen to anyone.
• 5:41
  Speaker 2: So they need to put things there's no PPE for example.
• 5:46
  Speaker 2: We've been trying to get the agency to have training
• 5:50
  Speaker 2: for example for PPE when there's any sort of incident
• 5:54
  Speaker 2: where there's you know, we saw the riot last year.
• 5:57
  Speaker 2: Apparently there's been a couple of incidents in this year
• 6:01
  Speaker 2: where us of taken over at block or whichever and themselves,
• 6:08
  Speaker 2: but that luckily has been uh you know, calmed down.
• 6:13
  Speaker 2: So but there's they still haven't got any anything to
• 6:16
  Speaker 2: protect them when they go into when there is a
• 6:19
  Speaker 2: situation like that, and they haven't been trained in if
• 6:23
  Speaker 2: there's a situation like that. So training is something that's
• 6:26
  Speaker 2: calling miffed in there as well as you know, self defense.
• 6:32
  Speaker 2: So there's so it's obviously for so.
• 6:37
  Speaker 1: Yeah, so it sounds as okay, pretty well, immediately there
• 6:40
  Speaker 1: needs to be some additional training, There needs to be
• 6:42
  Speaker 1: additional staff, and there does need to be some self
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  Speaker 1: defense to those staff out.
• 6:46
  Speaker 2: There, Oh certainly, yeah, and there needs to be safe
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  Speaker 2: practices in there so that you know, there's a policy
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  Speaker 2: for example, if there's a high risk young person there
• 6:57
  Speaker 2: that there will be three officers who'll be with them
• 7:00
  Speaker 2: if they need to escort them, so I think it's
• 7:04
  Speaker 2: three or four. And if they have to take them
• 7:08
  Speaker 2: to hospital or they have to take them to court
• 7:10
  Speaker 2: for example. And whilst we did have there is a
• 7:13
  Speaker 2: policy about how many staff they should have to unlock
• 7:18
  Speaker 2: or lock up or while young people are out, depending
• 7:22
  Speaker 2: on their risk, we don't think that that's being.
• 7:24
  Speaker 3: Followed well, Kay, densely.
• 7:27
  Speaker 1: It sounds like a pretty bloody, frightening situation for those
• 7:30
  Speaker 1: staff out there at the don Dale Youth Detention Center
• 7:32
  Speaker 1: at the moment. Is there anything else we should be
• 7:35
  Speaker 1: aware of just before we wrap up?
• 7:39
  Speaker 2: No, As I said, we'll be working with our work
• 7:42
  Speaker 2: Health and Safety people in trying to get something in there.
• 7:46
  Speaker 2: So management aren't going to do it off their own bats.
• 7:51
  Speaker 2: Then we're going to have to use the Work Health
• 7:52
  Speaker 2: and Safety Act to make them do it.
• 7:54
  Speaker 1: So yeah, yeah, well, Kay, please keep us up to
• 7:58
  Speaker 1: date as these steps are taken. We really appreciate you
• 8:01
  Speaker 1: having a chat with us, and I really feel for
• 8:04
  Speaker 1: those staff out there having to deal with that. That's
• 8:07
  Speaker 1: really terrible stuff.
• 8:10
  Speaker 2: Thank you. I'm also on another note, Japana Energy just
• 8:13
  Speaker 2: voted down their agreements seventy percent today because there's no
• 8:18
  Speaker 2: pay roads.
• 8:18
  Speaker 1: So Jacana Energy staff have just voted down that workplace
• 8:23
  Speaker 1: agreement in terms of the pay the pay negotiations. Yes,
• 8:27
  Speaker 1: that's good, and.
• 8:28
  Speaker 3: Tell us that number again, so seventy.
• 8:30
  Speaker 2: Percent, seventy percent said no, yeah.
• 8:33
  Speaker 3: Seventy percent said no. Well kay, no doubt.
• 8:36
  Speaker 1: We'll talk to you again very soon, potentially on the
• 8:39
  Speaker 1: on the Jacana stuff.
• 8:40
  Speaker 3: But we'll talk again very soon. Thanks for your time
• 8:42
  Speaker 3: this morning, No, thank you, thank you.
• 8:45
  Speaker 1: It is just twenty minutes away from eleven o'clock. Eight
• 8:47
  Speaker 1: nine one four nine is the number. Yeah, So that
• 8:50
  Speaker 1: breaking news there Jacana Energy. They've obviously voted down in
• 8:55
  Speaker 1: those pay negotiations that that pay free seventy percent of
• 8:58
  Speaker 1: the staff. But also talking about that situation with those
• 9:02
  Speaker 1: staff out there, the assaults at don Dale Youth Detention Center,
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  Speaker 1: so thirty or more staff right now on leave due
• 9:10
  Speaker 1: to injury.
• 9:10
  Speaker 3: As a result of assaults in the workplace.
• 9:13
  Speaker 1: We know that the Northern Territory News has got that
• 9:15
  Speaker 1: data that showed that there were twenty nine assaults against
• 9:17
  Speaker 1: offices between August twenty two and October twenty three. As
• 9:21
  Speaker 1: you'd heard then from Kay Densley as well, a staff
• 9:25
  Speaker 1: member knocked out, knocked unconscious last weekend, and she believes
• 9:29
  Speaker 1: another a couple of days ago. She has obviously spoken
• 9:33
  Speaker 1: to that staff member from the weekend who is a
• 9:35
  Speaker 1: member of the union, but yeah, that other staff member
• 9:40
  Speaker 1: not as much clarity on that situation. But that's pretty
• 9:42
  Speaker 1: unbelievable stuff. I mean, honestly, everybody deserves to be safe
• 9:46
  Speaker 1: when they go to work.