Corrections Officer

Amy: That's when we have a lot of cool conversations and they talk about all the things they want to do, all the things they've missed and they're really really optimistic about not coming back.

Voiceover: Meet Amy, Meera, and Tavita, all Corrections officers for the Department of Corrections.

Amy: I really had no idea what Corrections did. You see movies and you think oh opening doors closing doors. Every day isn't just opening closing doors there's different roles and different specialties, that people can do.

Voiceover: Being a corrections officer is nothing like what you'd expect. It's a lot more diverse than people think, with a range of environments, security levels, focus units, opportunities to grow and of course people to work with.

It's about connecting with people, getting to know and understand them, supporting them to make positive choices to change their lives and keeping everyone safe.

Amy: So, when they come through the receiving office, we really assess their risk to interact with others. We assess also their risk to themselves because it's not an easy time.

Each day our Corrections Officers could be doing a range of things. Searching cells, supervising activities, or taking people to rehabilitation programmes or appointments. But it's the moments between the routine that can matter just as much.

Tavita: Even if they don't want to change, I keep on coming and talking to them. Sitting down with them, having a chat with them. And the more you do that then, the more you understand their situation.

Amy: I think it's important to be empathetic. I think it's important to remember that these guys have been judged, they they've done all that, that's not what we are.

Voiceover: The officers work with case managers, instructors, psychologists, nurses, and most importantly friends and family so that once their sentence is up what's next for them is something positive for everyone. Not just for the person themselves, but also the wider community.

Because by helping to reduce reoffending, Corrections Officers help keep the community safe. To support this change, officers need to be able to connect with anyone, no matter who they are or where they're from and not just when it comes to people in prison - the team they work with too.

Meera: I used to work as a manager in hospitality. I ran bars, motels and restaurants for more than 7 years.

Tavita: I was a civil in engineer for 15, 16 years.

Voiceover: The thing Corrections officers all have in common is a genuine driving desire to improve our communities and keep people safe.

Tavita: You just have to have the understanding that everyone is different. Once you understand that, it's hard you keep on working with them.

Voiceover: Sometimes they have to deal with physical confrontation. The team have training, equipment, and processes in place to help keep them safe in these situations.

Amy: We work as a team. When we follow processes and we work with our team, it limits the danger, it limits the ability for us to be put into bad situations.

Voiceover: Safety is the number one priority so there are also specialist teams at each facility tasked with detecting and preventing security issues and dealing with any incidents. Dylan is part of the Site Emergency Response Team.

Dylan: We primarily respond to incidents, conduct searches, Intel searches and we just protect the border from any contraband introduction. We'll also go and help when any prisoners are refusing the lock, any code Blues, any code Reds which are our incident calls. We'll go respond to that and give them a hand wherever they need.

Voiceover: Prison can be a volatile environment and quite minor things can quickly escalate into something more serious. When this happens, Corrections Officers have the immediate support of their SERT colleagues as well as other tactical teams trained and equipped to deal with the most difficult situations. However, talking is often the most effective way of de-escalating tensions and problem solving. So, among the corrections team are specialist communicators like Tessa - always cool, calm and understanding.

Tessa: Preventing incidents, you start at the lowest point which is just communicating. Sometimes the smallest thing can trigger off the biggest reaction. So, if you start with communication, if you've got the right communication from the beginning, things generally resolve quite fast.

Voiceover: In a job that's about working with people and helping them to turn their lives around, strong communication skills and the ability to relate to others goes a long way. It's also these skills which help Corrections Officers keep each other safe.

Amy: When people come in, they're aggressive, they’re angry. I really like stepping in and kind of helping them out through that.

Meera: You will learn a lot how to deal with different situations and I really encourage women to join.

Tessa: I live a lot by the word decency. Treat people with decency and show decency and you can change, we’ve all got the ability to change.

Tavita: When I see people change, when I see people happy, and I know straight away that's me. When I think of my kids, my family, I can see the people here they have families as well. I just like to see them happy. Finish their sentence, go back home, love their families.

Voiceover: They really do make lives better and you could too. Join the team, apply today.