FACTSHEET
institution have been found to have significantly different
perceptions of the quality of their working lives in a
number of aspects.13 Among other things, this has been
attributed to the fact that private sector prisons are less
likely to be unionised, and managers have more flexibility
in ‘hiring and firing’, resulting in a higher turnover. Unions
can play an important role in representing staff interests
and improving their working conditions. However, in
some contexts they have had a negative effect on
industrial relations and the working atmosphere inside
prisons, in particular when local union representatives
were intransigent and resistant to change.14
A common aspect of prison culture is that prison officers
‘see themselves as part of an unvalued, unappreciated
occupational group’.15 This often includes a perception
that managers are bureaucrats who do not understand
the nature of the operational work, the dangers and
difficulties involved, and that prison management
does not properly support officers. Trust, legitimacy
and fairness are as important for prison officers as
they are for prisoners. The way they feel treated by
the organisation and management impacts on their
motivation and on how they treat prisoners. Negative
experiences and emotions are usually linked to a lower
quality of life for prisoners.16 Professional leadership by
senior managers is therefore of key importance. This
includes effective communication with staff and their
representatives and a commitment to uphold or improve
good working conditions for prison staff.
A clear code of ethics and disciplinary procedures
which are applied in a fair and transparent way can also
build staff confidence in management and help to protect
detainees, staff and the institution from inappropriate and
abusive behaviour.17
Prison officers frequently have a strong ‘esprit de
corps’, which emphasises solidarity with fellow officers.
It also often includes not siding with or being ‘soft’ on
prisoners.18 There can be significant peer pressure
from prison officers as a group about ‘the way things
are done’, and officers who do not conform may suffer
intimidation, harassment and ostracism. For example, a
unit of a Scottish prison was reportedly shunned by the
rest of the prisoner officer workforce because it worked
with prisoners who were labelled the most dangerous
and disruptive in a supportive and constructive way.19 In
extreme cases, prison officers can suffer violence from
colleagues as part of their training or initiation rites as a
way of ‘socialising’ them into a punitive culture.
‘There were reports that a member of the
Buenos Aires Penitentiary Service had
been subjected to various forms of physical
ill-treatment as a ritual to “welcome” him
to that department’s Special Intervention
Group (GIE).’20
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights
(IAHCR) considers that when state agents responsible
for the custody of persons deprived of their liberty are
themselves subjected to torture or cruel, inhumane and
degrading treatment by their own colleagues, the system
is being turned on its head and distorted. This distortion
makes it more likely that those officers will subject those
in their custody to similar or even worse violence.21
Discrimination is common within prisons and is likely
to affect staff as well as prisoners. Minorities may be
discriminated against by managers, peers and prisoners.
This can range from direct abuse to ‘indirect’ forms of
discrimination such as racist or other discriminatory
language being tolerated by managers, or to simply not
being professionally encouraged or being overlooked for
training and promotions. This not only violates the human
rights of staff, but also affects their motivation and
attrition and consequently how they treat prisoners.22 It
is therefore important that prison authorities put in place
clear regulations, policies and mechanisms to prevent
and address discriminatory behaviour.23
13. McLean C, and Liebling A, ‘Prison staff in the public and private sector’, in Bennet J, Crewe B, & Wahidin A, (eds.), Understanding prison staff, Willan
Publishing, 2008, p97.
14. See for example Liebling A, Prisons and Their Moral Performance, Oxford University Press, 2004, p403.
15. Crawley E, & Crawley P, ‘Understanding prison officers: culture, cohesion and conflicts’ in Bennet J, Crewe B, & Wahidin A, (eds.), Understanding
prison staff, Willan Publishing, 2008, p134.
16. Liebling A, Prisons and Their Moral Performance, Oxford University Press, 2004, pp419 & 425.
17. The Council of Europe has recommended that prison services adopt a code of ethics for staff. See Recommendation CM/Rec(2012)5 of the Committee
of Ministers to member States on the European Code of Ethics for Prison Staff. For example, the Isle of Man Prison Service has a Code of Conduct
and Discipline, available at http://www.gov.im/lib/docs/hr/iomcs/Handbook/codeofconductiomprisonservice.pdf <accessed 29 October 2013>
18. Liebling A, Price D, & Shefer G, The prison officer, Routledge, 2012, p163.
19. Sim J, ‘An inconvenient criminological truth’: pain, punishment and prison officers’ in in Bennet J, Crewe B, & Wahidin A, (eds.), Understanding prison
staff, Willan Publishing, 2008, p188.
20. Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, Report on the human rights of persons deprived of their liberty in the Americas, 2011, p63.
21. Ibid.
22. Singh Bui H, and Fossii J, ‘The experiences of black and minority ethnic prison staff’ in Bennet J, Crewe B, & Wahidin A, (eds.), Understanding prison
staff, Willan Publishing 2008, p57.
23. Mechanisms to address racism include, for example, ‘race relations committees, race relations officers, sophisticated range-setting ethnic monitoring,
regular audits and racial complaints procedures’, see Singh Bui H, and Fossii J, ‘The experiences of black and minority ethnic prison staff’ in Bennet J,
Crewe B, & Wahidin A, (eds.), Understanding prison staff, Willan Publishing, 2008, p51.
Penal Reform International | Staff working conditions: Addressing risk factors to prevent torture and ill-treatment
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