Queensland youth detention staff stage walkout over safety and staffing crises

Employees at four Queensland youth detention facilities—including Brisbane, Cleveland, West Moreton and the Wacol Youth Remand Centre—initiated industrial action this morning, citing persistent safety hazards, overcrowding and chronic understaffing. Demonstrators gathered at Wacol around 9 am, with the protest expected to continue into the afternoon, after negotiations that began in early March. The strike follows reports of hundreds of assaults on staff over the previous year and data showing three of the four southeast Queensland centres operating above “safe capacity.”

Australian Workers' Union Queensland secretary Stacey Schinnerl told the crowd that 60 % of staff have left in the last twelve months and that workers face “unimaginable occupational violence.” Youth Justice Minister Laura Gerber responded that the safety of both staff and detainees is “vitally important,” emphasizing the government’s willingness to negotiate and pointing to a recent 25 % increase in worker numbers and additional beds in the pipeline.