Overview
- More than 5,000 Corrective Services NSW staff were ordered by the Industrial Relations Commission to cease industrial action and return to work by 6am Friday.
- The protest followed a Cessnock Local Court decision to impose three-year community corrections orders on Cameron Welsh for assaults on four officers, adding no extra prison time.
- All 36 public prisons were locked down and courts faced disruption on Thursday before operations began to stabilise after the return‑to‑work ruling.
- Prosecutors’ application for a sentence correction was refused on Friday, though a broader appeal to a higher court remains available and is being pursued through the DPP.
- The government and Corrective Services are also moving to oppose any release through parole processes, as the IRC’s written reasons stressed the independence of the judiciary.