Prison staff on Portland have walked out in a row over working conditions. 


Prison officers at the YOI joined thousands across the country in protest this morning, saying they don’t feel safe at work. 


Officers told how they are often verbally abused, assaulted and how prisoners regularly throw urine and faeces at them. 


They also spoke about how drugs are rife at the 580-capacity prison prison, which is a mixture of young offenders and adult category C prisoners, but say they are too understaffed to be able to control it. 


Tony Walker, of the Prison Officers Association, said: “We’re out here because staff don’t feel safe at work and are fed up of this dangerous environment all of the time. 


“We need more staff and we need to be able to retain those staff. It’s no good recruiting 2,000 people if they’re leaving as quickly as they’re coming.”


Figures show that there has been a 16 per cent decline in frontline officers at the prison since 2013 – from 130 officers in 2013, to 120 officers in 2014 and 2015, and 109 in 2016.


One officer said: “Deaths in custody used to be a rarity but we had two in the space of a few months. 


“It’s all down to staff levels, lack of investment and cuts. The Tory government has taken the recession as an excuse to take us back to Victorian times and to attack workers’ rights.” 


Prison staff say they have not had a pay rise in six years, and that the pay offered to new staff has decreased – meaning many officers earn different amounts for doing the same job. 


Officer Trudy Dixon said: “It’s awful to work at the prison at the moment with the amount of staff we have. We’re restricted on the amount of drugs we can control coming in when there are no staff to search. We can’t be everywhere at once and it’s about two staff to 40 prisoners. 


“We’re very stressed. I’ve sat at home worrying about stuff that’s happened. 
“Many officers have had excrement thrown at them – female officers, too –and there are psychological effects to that. One had PTSD.


“Every day we say to each other ‘be safe, stay safe’ and that’s not right. That’s not normal. Not when you could be stacking shelves somewhere for more money than this.”

Andy Dubber says he was head-butted and kicked by an inmate who had taken drugs. 


Mr Dubber said: “There are problems with what used to be legal highs – they’re illegal now – but they still get in because there isn’t enough staff. The problems as a result of them are massive –they’re extremely addictive, inmates run up debts and debts lead to violence and stabbings.

 
“There are no resources for staff or prisoners – we’re understaffed and prisoners have committed suicide and self-harm. The prisoners agree with us. They don’t feel safe.”


Prison officer Kevin Jess said violence at the prison is getting worse. “It’s not just this prison,” he said. “It’s happening all over the country .

"It’s a national problem and we’re out here supporting prison staff across the country."

A spokesman for the Ministry of Justice said: “We have at 2.30pm today been granted an injunction by the High Court against the Prison Officers’ Association.

 
“The injunction prevents the POA and any of its officials including local officials from inducing, authorising or supporting any form of industrial action by any prison officer which would disrupt the normal running of the Prison Service in England and Wales.


“We have been clear that we expect prison officers to return to work with immediate effect. The union’s position is unnecessary and unlawful and will make the situation in our prisons more dangerous.”