OUR LEADERS HAVE NOT LEARNED A THING

(See the latest issue of Gatelodge to see the horrific images that accompany this article)

 

Another vicious attack on a prison officer begs the question: when will decisions be made to make our violent workplaces safer?

I find myself incandescent with rage after hearing about yet another vicious attack on a POA member by a cowardly convict yielding a weapon fashioned out of a razor blade. I have viewed the most horrific photographs of prison officers who have been subjected to unprovoked attacks and are now physically and mentally scarred for life, and all because they wear the King's uniform and serve the public. Being in a position of authority should never make you a target and if HMPPS are serious about a zero-tolerance policy on violence against staff then why has the POA been waiting since 2018 for our leaders to decide if removing razors from our violent workplaces is a good idea?

Just think how many serious assaults and incidents of self-harm could have been prevented if razors were no longer available either in house or to purchase during that period. We have had ‘deep dives’ and ‘drivers’ along with ‘pilots’ and ‘project teams’ all ‘analysing’ the findings. The findings are all too clear to our colleagues who are now recovering from life changing and, in some cases, career-ending injuries due to attacks on them with razors.

Well, my priorities are clear – I will not stand back and allow our employer to ignore the dangers you face and I will happily accept the consequences of my actions in order to protect you in your workplace.

The worrying trend in violence against staff continues to rise. It is apparent that leaders within our once-proud service either refuse to acknowledge or deliberately ignore the lessons from lockdown. So determined are they to appease prisoners and the Chief Inspector of Prisons that they now think reverting to pre lockdown levels of unlock and activities is the way forward. Lockdown taught us that our prisons can be safe again if we have the will to make them safe.

THINKING OUTSIDE THE BOX

Smaller unlock numbers that are manageable and allow staff to forge positive relationships with prisoners satisfies the targets we all want: reduced levels of violence. Not mixing prisoners from different wings reduces violence even further. Removing pool tables means staff and prisoners will no longer be attacked with cues or balls. We had the chance to work differently but all I keep hearing from staff and local branches is that managers are trying to bully them into reintroducing full wing unlocks and association periods that breed violence. There are some governors out there who have removed pool tables completely and are thinking ‘outside the box’. They have engaged locally with the POA and their regimes have been proven to reduce violence. Unfortunately, in this day and age, that type of governor is very rare.

If our employer wants the key work model to work the way it should then they need to prioritise key work over association and domestics. Key work can make a difference but it has not been allowed to because of our leaders’ obsession with unlocking large groups of prisoners for no purpose other than ‘time out of cell’. I am all for time out of cell as long as prisoners are occupied and addressing their criminality. Learning new skills that aids rehabilitation or increasing employability is a positive. Playing pool and table tennis, being bored and having the opportunity to settle scores is not positive, and is why we are in such a mess. If regimes are to provide association, then surely it makes sense to introduce it at weekends and bank holidays only.

If prisons have reintroduced pre-covid regimes, including pool and table tennis, then it should have been agreed locally with the the staff working in that prison consulted by their local POA committee and everyone in agreement that those activities do not put them or prisoners at risk. If this is not the case then it needs to be urgently addressed. Any sensible and caring employer would immediately remove the threat, but with HMPPS, they care more about terminology than they do about staff safety. When I get berated by the employer for calling a con a con it tells you all you need to know about their priorities.

I want all POA members to be safe at work and I will continue to repeat myself until you act: “If you think it is unsafe, then do not do it.”

The roll out of PAVA spray in the juvenile estate is a pending decision. It has been a pending decision since April 2023 and since that time I have continually warned the Secretary of State for Justice that the longer he delays the decision the more likely it is that we will witness a death due to the lack of protection staff are afforded.

I am well aware that those who oppose it will mount a legal challenge. But if they had their way rapists, terrorists, paedophiles and murderers would be roaming free. All we are asking for is an incapacitant spray that helps to quell violence. We came close to a young prisoner being killed just a few weeks ago; how long will it be before the brave staff protected only by a polo shirt intervene to save a life only to suffer catastrophic consequences in the melee?

VIOLENCE ON THE RISE

I am fed up with these ‘reform’ groups excusing violent behaviour just because of a prisoner’s young age. A 15-year-old can cause just as much physical damage as an adult. The under 18 juvenile estate is the most violent estate in the entire prison system yet it offers staff zero protection. How is that right? If police forces in the UK can justify using tasers and PAVA on 12 and 13-year-olds, I fail to see why issuing prison officers who work with juveniles PAVA is such a big issue.

The statistics within our juvenile prisons speak volumes. In 2017 there were 1,789 prisoner-on-prisoner assaults and 109 serious assaults. By the end of 2023 that had risen to 2,044 assaults with 186 being serious. On staff, the assaults are even more concerning. In 2017 there were 450 assaults of which 56 were serious. That had escalated in 2023 to 986 assaults against staff, with 111 being serious. That is a near shocking double increase in serious assaults on staff within a six-year period, and all this with a vastly reduced juvenile prisoner population. We are now locking up far fewer juvenile offenders than we ever have, but the individuals we do have are displaying extreme levels of violence.

If the government refuses to give us PAVA what are they going to give us?

Much better to have and not need than to need and not have.

PAY DEADLINE MISSED AGAIN

The POA once again submitted written evidence to the pay review body on time. Our submissions were met with an announcement from HMPPS that their submissions would again, for the umpteenth consecutive year, be late. There are simply no excuses for our employer to miss the deadline. They have vast resources and no doubt work on their submissions for at least 10 months, so why the excuses? If the review body issues a deadline, then allows one party to consistently ignore that deadline and accepts their late submissions, what is the point of a deadline?

As far as the POA are concerned late submissions should not be accepted. If the review body do accept HMPPS’ late submissions they are making a mockery of the entire process.

INDUSTRIAL ACTION GETS RESULTS

It is pleasing to see the value of having full trade union rights. Scottish POA members have the right to strike and recently intended to exercise that right when their government thought they could offer a derisory pay award that disrespected the work they do. Our members and the Scottish National Committee quite rightly decided that industrial action was the only option if government refused to listen. The threat of strike action focused minds and it was pleasing to see the Scottish Government revise their offer which was eventually accepted by the membership. Who said industrial action doesn’t work? The threat of it is a valuable tool for any worker and although none of us wish to walk that road the basic human right of any worker to withdraw their labour should apply to all. It will be interesting to see if a future Labour Government will reinstate the right to strike for prison officers in England and Wales. In Northern Ireland, the POA will continue to campaign for the right to strike to be reinstated.

Our colleagues working in Secure Psychiatric Services will eagerly await the NHS pay award. With increasing levels of violence and decreasing staffing levels, the pressures on POA members in this field are visible to all. We will continue to observe this situation and will not hesitate to enact their right to strike should our hardworking members indicate that their pay award is insufficient. Let’s be honest, every worker should expect an inflation busting pay award, anything less is a pay cut.

HORROR STORIES

The POA continue to get positive results for our colleagues within the private sector. Some tough negotiations have secured decent pay increases for our long-suffering private sector membership. The mutual aid given to Lowdham Grange proves that putting profit above safety really is no way to run a prison. I have heard some horror stories from public sector staff wo are assisting with stability at that site. When convicts take control and there are ‘no go’ areas in prisons it really does make you wonder what the management, and the union that has recognition rights at that prison, are actually doing. It’s a shame the POA does not represent staff at Lowdham as we would never have allowed such intolerable and unsafe working practices to stagnate. It is only right that Lowdham should be handed to the public sector. Expecting the public sector to bail out a profiteer is simply not on. The only way Lowdham will be run like a prison should be run is to hand it to the public sector.

With so many voluntary tasks expected of POA members I am surprised we are not all working for nothing. Yet another voluntary task is expected of staff with the introduction of the prescription drug Naloxone. It’s a sad admission by HMPPS that our prisons are so awash with drugs that they now wish staff to volunteer to carry and administer this drug. It requires specialist training and an annual refresher, but in our employers’ eyes does not warrant any additional allowance for this additional skill.

How much more do we take?

Before POA members know it they will be volunteering for more tasks than is identified on their job descriptions. Imagine asking an electrician to volunteer to rewire your home for no additional money while they are fitting you a new plug socket? Any member of staff who provides an additional skill should receive additional salary. It’s time POA members knew their worth and began to decline the offers of becoming a volunteer. If they wish to volunteer they can access their local Salvation Army.

As the Annual POA Conference approaches I look forward to meeting our amazing branch officials and those members who attend as observers. We have much to discuss and debate and I am positive conference will once again show how valuable and professional our proud union is.

Until next time, look after each other, stay safe and stay united. Solidarity to you all. l

MARK FAIRHURST
NATIONAL CHAIR