One of the largest jails in New South Wales will soon be returned to public hands. The Junee Correctional Facility has been privately operated for 30 years, but that will change from early 2025.
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00:00 The news that the privately run Duney Correctional Centre will be taken over by the New South
00:05 Wales Government has caught some here in Duney by surprise.
00:09 The Government announced yesterday that its contract with private operator GEO Group will
00:13 not be renewed when it expires in March 2025.
00:16 The centre has been integral to the small town in the New South Wales Riverina since
00:20 it opened 30 years ago and yesterday's sudden announcement has residents worried.
00:24 "The lack of consultation up until now that has everybody on edge, people don't know what's
00:32 going to happen, don't know where their job's going.
00:36 The GEO Group run jails in Queensland and Victoria.
00:41 Are these people going to be asked to move to those locations?
00:44 We just don't know."
00:46 Private provider GEO Group has operated the centre since it opened and President of the
00:50 Duney Chamber of Commerce Tony Butt says the town has a close working relationship with
00:54 the company.
00:55 He's worried about the wider effect on the community with the private jail providing
00:59 the town with sponsorships and jobs outside of direct prison roles.
01:03 However Corrections Minister Anilak Chanthavong said that the change is a win for frontline
01:08 staff in the community, locking in secure and well-paid public sector jobs for the region.
01:13 And he said staff and inmates would have greater access to justice health.
01:16 The men's mixed security prison was opened by the state government in 1993 and has been
01:21 operated by US-owned GEO Group ever since.
01:24 It's one of the largest employers in the Riverina with staff overseeing more than 1,000 inmates.
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