The rally was in protest of the Federal Government’s request for the productivity commission to make a submission regarding industrial relations.

Chairman of the Cessnock Prison Officers’ Vocational Branch of the Public Service Association, Paul Jones said the key recommendations of the submission will look to take away penalty rates, abolish minimum wage and implement individual contracts for workers.

“It sort of starts to sound like Work Choices,” he said.

The campaign was started by the Australian Council of Trade Unions, and Officer Jones said they were rallying to raise awareness.

“People don’t seem to know this is actually happening,” he said.

“I thought it [Work Choices] was dead and buried but now it appears to be coming back.”

Officer Jones said that penalty rates earned from working night shifts, weekends and public holidays are an incentive for the time spent away from family.

“These are unsociable hours,” he said.

Officer Jones also feared this will have a domino effect into other industries.

“This is all part of the puzzle that seems to be nationwide,” he said.

“It will drastically change what Australia is about.”

Cessnock Correctional Facility’s NSW Nurses Association president Leonie Sweeny, who was heavily involved in the organisation of the rally, said that all workers should be rewarded for working these sorts of hours.

“Our forefathers fought for these conditions,” she said.

“We’ve got to stand up and fight for them.”

She spoke about the effect that working nightshift has on the quality of people’s lives as well as the added expense of child care for working outside normal hours.

“All workers that work these hours should be rewarded for it,” she said.

Dozens of staff from all areas of the correctional facility gathered for the rally, where Officer Jones, Ms. Sweeny and vice-chair of the Cessnock Prison Officers’ Vocational Branch of the PSA, Geoff Kelty addressed the crowd.

 “You don’t have to be Einstein to figure out what the result of that feasibility study is,” Officer Kelty said.

“It is Work Choices by stealth,” he added.

Justice Health staff also raised concern about quality of care, as they say current staff will not work under the proposed conditions.

“I think a lot of people will be leaving the profession altogether,” one said.

“If nurses don’t work, people will die.”