Chronic understaffing and years of inadequate resourcing are driving a growing crisis across Tasmania’s prisons, courts and community corrections, with workers warning the system is becoming increasingly unsafe for staff, prisoners and the broader community.
New figures show Tasmania’s prisoner population continues to rise, with the average daily number of prisoners increasing from 642 in 2021–22 to 784 in 2024–25, while funding, staffing and rehabilitation opportunities have failed to keep pace.
At the same time, Tasmania records the lowest average time out of cells of any state or territory, with prisoners spending just 7.0 hours per day out of cell in 2024–25, well below the national average of 8.9 hours.
Community and Public Sector Union Tasmania Secretary Thirza White said the figures confirm what frontline workers have been saying for years.
“This is what chronic understaffing looks like in real terms – increased wait times for court, prisoners locked down for longer, rehabilitation programs cancelled, family visits restricted and staff stretched to breaking point,” Ms White said.
“We have a clear understanding of what staffing levels are needed to keep people safe. When prisons are understaffed, essential services simply don’t run, and that creates instability, risk and poorer outcomes for everyone.”
Despite the growing prison population, there has been little investment in education, rehabilitation, and work options for prisoners, leaving correctional officers to manage an increasingly complex environment with fewer supports.
“The number of people in prison has gone up year after year, well past what the outdated facilities can cope with,” Ms White said.
“Stability is what makes a prison safe. That requires a whole‑of‑system workforce strategy, not short‑term fixes or crisis management.”
Community Corrections under severe strain
Pressures are also intensifying in Community Corrections, where the average daily offender population increased to 2,098 in 2024–25, and offender‑to‑staff ratios have worsened from 14.7 in 2022–23 to 16.0 in 2024–25.
The CPSU, the main union for public sector workers in Tasmania, says workers are reporting unsustainable caseloads, high turnover and unsafe working conditions.
“Community Corrections is in a state of disarray because staffing simply hasn’t kept up,” Ms White said.
“Officers are managing unacceptably high workloads, often working with violent or unpredictable offenders without adequate support. That puts staff safety, rehabilitation outcomes and community safety at risk.”
Ms White said low wages, limited career progression and unsafe conditions are driving skilled workers out of the system.
“Staff want to do a good job and they keep turning up, but many feel burnt out and undervalued. Many are professional staff who can get higher wages in other agencies or the not-for-profit sector” she said.
“If government doesn’t address pay, workload and staffing levels, the turnover will continue, and that only compounds the problem.”
Courts backlog growing as staffing pressures bite
The crisis is also evident in Tasmania’s Magistrates Courts, where criminal and civil workloads continue to grow while clearance rates decline.
In 2024–25, Tasmania recorded a criminal clearance rate of just 79.6 per cent, well below most other jurisdictions, alongside increasing backlogs of cases extending beyond six and twelve months.
“Court workers are telling us they are overworked, underpaid and under enormous pressure as workloads rise and staff numbers fall,” Ms White said.
“Backlogs and delays aren’t just statistics – they affect victims, defendants and the integrity of the justice system itself.”
“The frustrating part is that investment in courts could save millions in prison costs, with remand prisoner numbers exploding.”
Call for urgent government action
Ms White said the warning signs across prisons, community corrections and courts are clear and cannot be ignored.
“This is a system under strain from end to end, and it will only deteriorate further without urgent action,” she said.
“The government must step in now with a properly funded workforce strategy that addresses staffing shortages, retention, safety and rehabilitation – before the crisis deepens even further.”