Western Australian Prison Officers' Union

The Western Australian Prison Officers’ Union (WAPOU) is a registered trade union founded in 1934 in Western Australia. The union represents employees within the prison services, including prison officers of Western Australia. The union is affiliated with the Australian Council of Trade Unions, UnionsWA and the Australian Labor Party (WA). The union is part of the Prison Officers of Australasia organisation, representing prison officers through the region. as of 2020 there are 2,721 registered members throughout the WA prison service in both private and public facilities.

The union acts as a collective body to serve its registered members across both the private and public prison facilities. This includes engagement with government proceedings and media coverage involving issues that impact or are affiliated with prison affairs and controversies. It runs a multitude of campaigns that represent the values of the union. These campaigns include matters such as overcrowding, staff safety, privatisation,

The union has a social media presence, which utilizes mass communication to reach out to both members and the wider public that may share an interest in prison affairs in Western Australia. An ongoing social media campaign of WAPOU's is their "Respect the Risk" campaign, which provides a spotlight on the roles and responsibilities of prison officers within the field. This enables community involvement outside of the WAPOU's members.

Individuals who are considered eligible for membership into the union are employees within a prison or prison services within Western Australia. A member's membership is revoked upon leaving their position within the prison services. In the event of an individual wanting to end their membership, a written resignation is required with 14 days notice. Individuals are still responsible for any subscriptions or levies leading up to and including the date of exit. Past members of the union can be nominated and awarded by the executive and state office as "life members" after 15 years of continuous membership. To be awarded this status, a member must also demonstrate at least 10 years of service to the running of the union and its events.

This fund is known as the Prison Officers Funeral Benefit Fund (POFBF); all current members of WAPOU are automatic members of this fund. Past members of the union whose membership exceed seven years prior to their exit, are still considered members of this funeral fund. The fortnightly contribution of the POFBF is decided upon in the WAPOU annual general meeting (AGM) led by the executive members of the union. The minimum contribution is $1.00 per contribution payment. A funeral benefit amount is decided by the executive committee, led by the secretary and the benefit is later paid to the member's dependants and/or the member's personal legal representative.

Upon official notice of death of a WAPOU member, all members contribute a payment of $15.00 each. As part of the application process, all members must nominate a recipient of their death benefit. If a recipient is not listed, with discretion in mind the union may nominate next of kin to receive the levy. If within six months the levy has not been claimed by either next of kin or nominated recipient, the funds may be redistribution towards the general fund of the union. The union voiced within the Western Australian Prison Officers Union Newsletter (April 1973) concerns that the inclusion of external services would pose a threat to security and thus posed a threat to the welfare and safety of its officers. which listed the state's expectations of prison officer's roles and responsibility. Prison officers were expected to take an oath of allegiance towards the new act. The WAPOU publicly argued against the introduction of this new act; The outcome of WAPOU public action, created an amendment to the initial act. The act was amended that only newly recruited officers had to take the oath of allegiance. The campaign is predominantly run on the union's Facebook This agreement does not extend to prisons within private system; this agreement reduces the operating decision power of the union. In the 1990s, the state government (Liberal/National Party coalition) and WAPOU agreed to a prison reform plan that would prohibit WA from privatising its prison systems until 1997. However, in 1999, The Prison Act Amendment Act was passed, which enabled the state government to begin construction of a new private facility, Acacia Prison, which later opened in 2001. All contract changes and agreements for Serco facilities are available online. The union has disputed the distribution of funds devoted to employment within the private sector. A 2015 ERA report found that 53% of funds within the public system are dedicated to the employment of officers.

The union has face wider criticism from governing bodies within Western Australian as having too much operational power over any decisions associated with reform of prison facilities. As a union body they act for the benefits and interests of their members; this responsibility does not extend to other operating bodies such as ministers and commissioners. WAPOU's decision making capacity is limited to the public domain. Under the Department of Corrective Services Prison Officers' Enterprise Agreement 2013, all decisions involving public prisons within WA must be made with correspondence with the union. This agreement does not extend to prisons within private system, reducing the operating decision power of the union.