Detention centre workers threaten strike action after employer Serco loses contract to US prison group
British multinational Serco has been accused of dodging its “legal and moral obligations” to WA workers as it exits a 15-year deal running Australia’s immigration detention centres in favour of US private prison group Management and Training Corporation.
Following inquiries by The West Australian, the United Workers Union claimed that Serco was seeking to avoid redundancy payments by advising staff at the Perth Immigration Detention and Yongah Hill Immigration Detention centres to resign if they wished to continuing working at the sites with the new operator.
The union argues that workers are entitled to a redundancy when Serco’s contract expires soon.
Serco, however, has denied any wrongdoing.
It says that MTC refused its offer to transition its 2000 national detention staff across to the US company, meaning those Serco employees who want to carry on at the centres will have to apply for a job with MTC and then resign from Serco if successful, foregoing a potential redundancy.
That leaves some 1000 workers in limbo, as there is no guarantee of a job at MTC and Serco has still to decide how many of them will be retained and redeployed elsewhere within the group when the extended detention centre contract expires probably by the end of March.
In a statement on Thursday, the UWU said more than 96 percent of members indicated in a protected action ballot they would be willing to take extended strike action.
That would include workers at the Perth Immigration Detention and Yongah Hill Immigration Detention centre.
The Union said it had notified Serco that the first stoppage would be on Tuesday February 4.
UWU executive director Godfrey Moase said earlier this month the union was “aware that Serco has been incorrectly telling workers at Perth Immigration Detention and Yongah Hill Immigration Detention centres in WA to resign in what appears to be a deliberate tactic to avoid paying redundancies”.
“UWU is currently formulating a plan in response to Serco’s behaviour, including examining various forms of legal and industrial action but in the meantime, we are telling members at the centres to not resign,” Mr Moase said.
“Serco is a multi-billion dollar, multi-national that has reaped huge rewards from lucrative taxpayer-funded contracts in Australia and now, in a shameful act on the way out, is trying to avoid its legal and moral obligations to the workers who contributed to its financial success over the past 15 years.”
Serco, whose last annual financial results showed a $41 million profit, insisted it was doing “everything possible” to support staff affected by the loss of the detention centre contract.
“Serco is fully aware of the requirements of the Fair Work Act and we are actively engaging with employees and the union,” a spokesperson said.
“We want to help facilitate as many as possible moving to the new operator and for those that don’t want to, we will help them identify alternate roles.”
The company has been contacted for comment regarding the proposed industrial action.
MTC is being paid $2.3 billion by the Federal Government to operate the nation’s onshore immigration detention over the next five years. The group already runs the Parklea correctional centre in NSW and offshore processing facilities on Nauru.
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