OZschwitz council staff bashed, spat on, punched, kicked; Excellent!

NEW laws to better protect council rangers, inspectors and lifeguards from assaults and threats will be introduced into parliament this week.

Prompted by an increase in attacks on council law enforcement staff, the legislation will allow magistrates and judges to automatically assess the incidents on a similar footing to attacks on police and teachers.

Wayne Moody from the United Services Union said: "It's at the point where … people go to work expecting abuse or a verbal or physical assault.

"People … don't like it when a ranger [tries to] keep school zones safe or make sure disabled parking spots are used by the right people."

Union general secretary Ben Kruse said no one "deserved to be bashed, spat on, punched, kicked or have objects thrown at them at work. No one, including me, likes to find a ticket on their windscreen. But these workers are simply doing the job they are employed by council to do, and without their work, our communities would be less tolerable to live in, the environment more polluted and our roads less functional."

Sutherland Council's regulation enforcement manager Brett Richardson said issues could quickly escalate because offenders often had a lot to lose. Fines of up to $1.1 million were available under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act, pushing some to extreme lengths to avoid prosecution. Mr Richardson said he was once threatened and harassed for several months by a man who illegally removed a tree.

Figures compiled by the Southern Sydney Region Organisation of Councils, which includes Sydney City and the eastern suburbs, show there were 72 assaults and 1734 cases of threats and harassment on staff in 2007-08.

Local Government Minister Barbara Perry said attacking council officers was not on. "These changes are sending out a strong message to the community that violence against council officers is completely unacceptable," she said.

"Courts consider both aggravating and mitigating factors in sentencing and may impose a heftier sentence upon an offender whose crime involved an aggravating factor."

LNK

OZschwitz council staff bashed, spat on, punched, kicked; Excellent!

OZschwitz council staff bashed, spat on, punched, kicked; Excellent!

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