Tasmanian Authorities has paid $3.68m in staff compensation to youth detention centre workers since 2015

The Tasmanian government has paid millions in compensation to employees of the Ashley Youth Detention Center over the past five years, according to documents received through a request for information.

Important points:

• The juvenile detention center has been investigated intensively over allegations of staff shortages and alleged abuse by workers
• The total cost of employee compensation at the Center over the past five years is more than $ 3.5 million
• The union says the payments are not surprising due to the staff shortage, while lawyers say they indicate cultural issues at the center

The ABC can show that Ashley has 95 employee compensation claims since 2015.

The documents show that 72 were physical and 23 were mental claims, for a total price of $ 3,681,726.

The funds cover the costs for medical care, rehabilitation, allied health and household help, and billing payments.

Robbie Moore, deputy secretary of state for the Union for Health and Community Services, said the report shows workers have been injured at work due to understaffing.

“Unfortunately we are not surprised by this number because we hear it from the staff every day,” he said.

“That they are understaffed and that there is a lack of infrastructure to create a safe workplace and safe home for residents,” said Moore.

The union that represents workers at the Ashley Youth Detention Center in Northern Tasmania is not surprised at the number of workers’ compensation claims made by the center’s staff. (ABC News: Luke Bowden)

The government has committed to redeveloping the site for more than $ 7 million.

That year, Ashley held an average of 15 inmates a day.

“The center will definitely need investment to stay long-term,” said Moore.

“It will take a significant investment in infrastructure and a significant investment in the workforce to ensure the center stays in place so that residents can have a safe place to live.”

According to the latest report from 2016, 74 percent of the juvenile offenders released by Ashley returned to the facility within 12 months.

Rehabilitation and therapeutic care are at the bottom of the priority list

Sebastian Buscemi, director of Odin Lawyers, was previously involved in investigating allegations made by inmates of abuse.

He said the pay numbers were a sign of cultural problems at the center.

“The high number of people who have come from Ashley to graduate from Risdon Prison would suggest rehabilitation and therapeutic care are pretty low on the priority list for what is going on there,” said Buscemi.

“Physical injuries also indicate a culture where the use of fairly severe physical violence can potentially lead to injury to staff.”

Lawyer Sebastian Buscemi says the injuries indicate cultural issues at the center. (ABC News: Loretta Lohberger)

More than 120 people have signed up for a class action lawsuit against the Tasmanian government alleging that they were ill-treated at the Ashley Center under the care of the state.

The bulk of the allegations about the North Tasmanian Center related to a period from about 1970 to 2010, with the class action lawsuit focusing on physical and sexual abuse.

“We are obviously very concerned about some of the allegations that have been made,” said Moore.

“But I want to point out that these are only allegations and that everyone deserves procedural justice and natural justice and that these workers should be given this in the same way as anyone else in this community.”

Ongoing examination

Ashley is under constant scrutiny and the call to close the center has recently been renewed. Five employees have been banned from the center since November. Two of them face historical allegations of sexual misconduct.

At the end of last month, Prime Minister Peter Gutwein announced a commission of inquiry into the reactions of successive state governments to allegations of sexual abuse of children.

The Commission of Inquiry – Tasmania’s version of a royal commission – will replace three simultaneous investigations in the ministries of health, education and communities.

The mandate was published last week.

Mr Buscemi said he was concerned about the mandate to “leave some of the broader systemic issues at the discretion of the Commissioner”.

“The focus on child sexual abuse is inadequate and it fails to capture a lot of behavior that is really worrying and just as harmful to children.”

“These workers’ compensation statistics are likely to actually support that people who suffer either physical or psychological injuries are more likely to be associated with behaviors outside the mandate of the commission of inquiry,” he added.

“I think it’s really important to deal with physical and psychological abuse.”

A spokesman for the Tasmanian government said employee resignation was not an indication of guilt, but rather a precautionary measure as part of employee and customer due diligence.

“The housing and rehabilitation of young people who have committed crimes is a challenging endeavor and every effort is made to ensure the safety of residents and staff,” the spokesman said.

“The [National] The legal protection program is doing what it was designed to do, and Communities Tasmania is committed to supporting this process through to completion. “