WorkSafe issues notices to QPS

Workplace Health and Safety Queensland has issued multiple regulatory notices to the Queensland Police Service after inspecting watch houses in Brisbane and regional Queensland, according to ABC reporting published on September 2. The action followed a formal complaint lodged in March by the Queensland Police Union, which cited severe overcrowding and unsafe staffing levels in the facilities. The notices were issued after site visits to watch houses including Brisbane, Caloundra, Caboolture, Ipswich, Cleveland, Southport and Beenleigh, the ABC reported. The regulator has said it continues to monitor compliance with the notices. ### Which watch houses were inspected, and where were notices issued? ABC reported that inspections were carried out at Brisbane and regional watch houses, including Caloundra and Caboolture, while the Queensland Police Union said site visits also took place at Ipswich, Cleveland, Southport and Beenleigh. QPU president Shane Prior said several notices were issued for the Brisbane watch house over chemical storage and building maintenance deficiencies. (abc.net.au) Shane Prior told ABC that Caloundra and Caboolture each received five improvement notices. One Caboolture notice related to the absence of a sexual harassment prevention plan, he said. The notices are not fines; WorkSafe Queensland says statutory notices are directions to remedy a contravention or risk that cannot be immediately fixed. ### What risks did the union tell the regulator about in March? (abc.net.au) The Queensland Police Union said in its March complaint that officers were working in overcrowded watch houses with unsafe staffing levels. ABC reported that the complaint also cited extended detention of adults for 21 days and young people for up to 30 days, along with hygiene failures in aging and underfunded facilities. (abc.net.au) The union’s complaint also referred to unreliable CCTV, poor ventilation, mould and insufficient personal protective equipment, according to ABC. In June, Prior said some regional facilities were forcing prisoners to sleep on floors, in exercise yards or in makeshift overflow areas, and described conditions for staff as “disgusting.” ### Why are fatigue and aggression part of a workplace safety case? (abc.net.au) WorkSafe Queensland says psychosocial hazards are risks arising from the design or management of work that can cause psychological or physical harm. The regulator’s guidance lists high job demands and work-related violence and aggression among those hazards, and says service-related violence can arise when workers deal with prisoners in enforcement settings. (abc.net.au) The overlap with watch houses was already documented in a 2025 QPS review. That review said aging infrastructure and increasing demand were placing “extraordinary pressure” on the workforce, while frontline responders were being taken off the road for watch-house duties, prisoner transport and hospital guards. ABC’s July 2025 reporting on the review said some watch houses had poor ventilation, ineffective CCTV and conditions linked to self-harm and prolonged detention. (worksafe.qld.gov.au) ### Had QPS already identified these problems internally? Queensland Police Service accepted all 34 recommendations from its 2025 watch-house review, according to ABC’s June 2026 reporting. The review found facilities designed to hold people for fewer than 72 hours had increasingly become long-term custodial environments. Deputy Commissioner Cameron Harsley’s review found adults were spending an average of 118 hours in watch houses and children 161 hours, with some adults held for more than 20 days, ABC reported in July 2025. (police.qld.gov.au) The report also said officers were being heavily redirected from frontline duties to support the watch-house network. ### What do the notices require QPS to do next? WorkSafe Queensland says inspectors must act when they identify a contravention or risk, and statutory notices require the duty holder to remedy the problem. (abc.net.au) The regulator says notices must be displayed at the affected workplace while they remain in force, and employers can seek an internal review if they dispute an inspector’s decision. (abc.net.au) Workplace Health and Safety Queensland told ABC it continues to monitor compliance with the notices. Queensland Police Service said in June it was aware of the union’s complaint and was “working with the regulator as required,” and the next public marker will be whether the service completes the remedial steps set out in the notices at the affected watch houses. (abc.net.au) (worksafe.qld.gov.au)