'Punjabis are a natural fit to work as Correctional officers in Australian prisons'

Sarabjit Singh Virdi works as a Senior Corrections Officer at Yatala Labour Prison in South Australia.

Sarabjit S Virdi, a Correctional Officer at South Australia's Yatala Prison Source: Supplied

Sarabjit has been working as a Corrections Officer for almost a decade now, and told SBS Punjabi, "I love my job. It gives me a wonderful opportunity to help offenders rehabilitate themselves, and gives me great satisfaction to know that we make a positive difference to people's lives."

"You need great honesty and integrity to do this job, and you acquire fantastic leadership skills while working as a Corrections Officer. That's why I think people of Punjabi background are perfectly suited to do this job - we are known for our integrity, hard work and natural leadership skills."

Yatala Labour Prison was founded in 1853, which makes it one of the oldest functional prisons of Australia. "Back then, prisoners worked at the nearby quarry and were required to do hard labour. But all that has changed now, with prisoners even having the option to work for various industries, while still serving time."

Sarabjit says, "The prison system here in Australia is very different from the system in India. Prisoners here are treated with a great deal of respect and we get that back in return."

"The Australian prison system gives inmates many opportunities to enhance their skills and capabilities, and they receive a very humane treatment - which is unlike many countries migrants like us were born and brought up in."

"When I joined Prison Services in South Australia, there were only a handful of Corrections Officers of Indian origin. That number has grown a lot over the past few years, and all of us have worked very hard to build a strong reputation of being capable and reliable officers. I would encourage more people from our community to explore this as a future career path, becasue the department really embraces diversity."

"All that is needed is a clear personal record, an equivalent of Year 12 qualifications, and the enthusiasm to work hard in a leadership role. Once selected, you get a three-month paid training and off you go!"

"As the Punjabi community has grown in Australia, we now see some prisoners of Punjabi origin too, but they form a very small percentage of the total prison populaiton,", Sarabjit Singh Virdi told SBS Punjabi. Click on the link above to hear his interview.

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Sarabjit S Virdi, a Correctional Officer at South Australia's Yatala Prison Source: Supplied