• What does the job involve?
• What are the pay and conditions?
• Who are we looking for?
• Eligibility, assessment, selection and appointment processes
• How to apply
• Contact details

A Prison Officer supervises every aspect of a prisoner's life, attending to their physical needs and wellbeing.  The tasks a Prison Officer is expected to do vary according to the security level of the prison in which they are employed.

These include:

• reception of prisoners and their induction into the prison
• helping prisoners develop a plan which makes the best use of their time in prison
• staffing the various units in the prison including gates and other strategic areas
• assisting with vocational training of prisoners
• supervising prison activities including recreation, industry and training activities.

In addition to custodial duties, a Prison Officer needs to build and maintain good relationships with prisoners.  This is a challenging role where a Prison Officer will have to balance authority with understanding and empathy. 

A Prison Officer needs to be able to understand and apply Department of Corrective Services' policy as it relates to adult offenders in custody.  A main aim of this policy is to reduce the number of people who re-offend and return to prison.

Benefits

• employment security
• flexible working conditions
• generous leave
• competitive salary
• career development opportunities
• uniform supplied (including shoes, socks, jackets and hats)
• a rewarding career

Shift work

Prison Officers work a full-time shift roster that consists of 10 shifts out of every 21-day period (including weekends and public holidays), and the roster can allow for up to six consecutive days off. Shifts are mainly 12 hours duration, usually between 7.00 am and 7.00 pm, including night shifts.  Rosters are prepared and posted on notice boards well in advance.

Salary (from 11 June 2009)

$42,677 per annum ($1,636.18 per fortnight) during a 12 week training program.

First year on the job starts at $55,402 per annum ($2,124.04 per fortnight), with increments to $64,725 per annum ($2,481.47 per fortnight) for seven or more years experience for Prison Officer shift.

Regional incentive allowance

For Prison Officers working at Eastern Goldfields, Roebourne and Broome Regional Prisons (tier one regional prison incentive) and the work camps attached to these prisons:

• Payment of a regional incentive allowance of $3,600 per annum (paid fortnightly) in addition to the annual salary.

For Prison Officers working at Greenough and Albany Regional Prisons (known as tier two prisons) and the work camps attached to these prisons:

• Payment of a regional incentive allowance of $1,800 per annum (paid fortnightly) in addition to the annual salary.

Salary packaging

The following benefits can be included in salary packaging:

• Additional superannuation, laptop computer, novated car lease, membership and subscription fees, financial planning advice, income protection insurance (other than that provided through a superannuation plan), self-education expenses and work-related travel expenses.

For Prison Officers employed at Eastern Goldfields, Roebourne and Broome Regional Prisons, the following additional benefits can be included in salary packaging:

• interest payments on purchased properties in remote locations
• private rent paid for employee sourced housing in remote locations
• residential fuel costs (i.e. electricity and gas) in remote locations.

Prison Officers employed at Broome and Eastern Goldfields Regional Prison are able to salary package their rental payments for Government Regional Officers Housing (GROH).

Additional incentives

The following incentives are available for Prison Officers employed at Eastern Goldfields, Roebourne and Broome Regional Prisons only:

• guaranteed transfer to a metropolitan prison or the regional prison from which an officer most recently transferred, following completion of two and a half years of service
• district allowance
• home loan subsidy scheme
• payment for reasonable water usage
• subsidised payment on air conditioning usage (applies to Roebourne and Broome Regional prisons only).

Prison Officers employed at Roebourne Regional Prison who are allocated Government Regional Officers Housing (GROH) receive rent free accommodation.

Leave entitlements

• Annual Leave - five weeks for non-shift Prison Officers / six weeks for Prison Officer shift
• Personal Leave (cumulative) - 124 hours per year 
• Personal Leave (non-cumulative) - 16 hours per year
• Parental Leave (paid) - 14 weeks
• Parental Leave (unpaid) - up to two years (includes any period of paid parental leave taken)
• Study Leave
• Long Service Leave - 13 Weeks (upon completion of 7 years continuous service)
• Purchased Leave - two or three weeks (reduced salary over 52 weeks).

Additional leave entitlements for Prison Officers employed at Roebourne and Broome Regional prisons only:

• Annual Leave – six weeks for non-shift Prison Officers / seven weeks for Prison Officers shift
• Travel Leave

Prison Officers come from a variety of backgrounds, bringing personal strengths, individual skills and life experience to the job.  The Department requires a professional approach; it needs people who take pride in their role and appreciate the importance of their work.

Working in a prison is about care, control, openness and limits.  But most importantly it’s about being a fellow human being, about understanding situations, finding solutions and providing the necessary conditions to enable the prisoner to take responsibility for his or her life.

A good Prison Officer must be alert and observant, able to work effectively under pressure, think calmly and clearly, and use their initiative.

Eligibility requirements

To be eligible for permanent appointment as a Prison Officer you must meet the following pre-employment eligibility requirements (please refer to DCS Recruiting for further information):

• Australian Citizenship or Australian Permanent Resident status, or New Zealand Citizenship*
• No serious conviction (applicants must be prepared to undergo criminal history screening and integrity checking.  Certain offences or associations can disqualify an application).

Please also note:

Successful applicants who are offered a position as a Prison Officer are required to obtain at their own cost a Senior or Advanced First Aid Certificate that includes CPR, prior to commencing training. Evidence of the certificate must be presented at the commencement of training.

Preference may be given to applicants who have a current, unrestricted manual C-Class driver’s licence (obtained at their own cost).

Preference may be given to applicants who are willing to obtain an HR-Class driver’s licence within 12 months of completing training at the cost of the Department.  For details about vehicle driver’s licences in Western Australia please refer to the Department for Planning and Infrastructure website.

*Conditions may apply, please refer to DCS Recruiting (contact details below) for further information.

Selection Assessments

Applicants must successfully complete all assessments used in the selection process to be eligible for placement in the Appointment Pool and considered for employment.  These assessments currently include:

• eligibility and identification checks
• employment profile assessment
• departmental selection panel interview
• medical assessment
• fitness assessment
• criminal history screening (this is undertaken by the Department following receipt of applications – applicants are not required to obtain a police clearance), and integrity checking (in-house).

The assessment process may change at any time, please refer to DCS Recruiting (contact details below) for further information.

Appointment and offer of employment

Successful applicants will be placed in the Prison Officer Appointment Pool and may be considered for employment as vacancies become available.

Placement in the Appointment Pool does not guarantee an offer of employment.

Successful applicants may be offered employment as Probationary Prison Officers. They will complete a nine (9) month Entry Level Training Program (ELTP) during which they are required to satisfy specific entry, training and performance requirements.  The ELTP consists of:

• A twelve (12) week (paid) off-the-job training program which covers topics such as communication skills, the judicial system, welfare skills, cross-cultural training, addiction studies, writing skills, offender management, prisoner programs, security and emergency procedures, communicable diseases and first aid. This program is conducted at the Corrective Services Academy of Western Australia in Bentley.
• An on-the-job probationary period of approximately six (6) months, during which Probationary Prison Officers are required to demonstrate the competent application of specific skills and knowledge within various work environments.  This will take the form of various formal and informal assessments conducted within the prison.  Probationary Prison Officers are required to collate and submit a portfolio of evidence in order to demonstrate ongoing competency during this phase.

Probationary Prison Officers are subject to ongoing performance requirements throughout their probationary period, and must receive a satisfactory Performance Appraisal with recommendation for permanency by the Superintendent of the prison. Probationary Prison Officers who successfully complete the training and assessment requirements may be awarded a Certificate III in Correctional Practice (Custodial), which is a Nationally Accredited Training qualification.

In addition, a Prison Officer is required to undertake ongoing learning and development activities to maintain a satisfactory level of skills and knowledge as required of the position.

The Department regularly conducts recruitment campaigns for Prison Officer vacancies. To register your interest, please contact DCS Recruiting and provide your contact details including your email address and/or postal address.

DCS Recruiting
Telephone: (08) 9264 9615
Email: dcs.recruiting@correctiveservices.wa.gov.au