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Detention centre worker sacked

A male guard at Australia's Christmas Island detention centre has been sacked after he was found to have had sex with a detainee.

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Source: AAP


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Staff at Australia's immigration detention centres have undergone retraining after a worker was sacked for having a sexual relationship with a detainee.

Managers of the Christmas Island centre, British-owned company Serco, have confirmed that a male employee was dismissed in October following an investigation.

"We take a zero tolerance approach to inappropriate relationships and any sexual contact is completely unacceptable," Serco spokesman Paul Shaw told AAP in a statement.

The matter has been reported to police and the Immigration Department.

A spokesman for Immigration Minister Scott Morrison told ABC TV the conduct was "appalling and completely unacceptable" and that the department would seek further information from Serco.

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The company has also revealed that three other Christmas Island staff, members of an emergency response team, have been reassigned after breaking protocol by drinking alcohol.

"During the periods when they are not at work but on-call, they must remain ready for duty at all times," Mr Shaw said of the stringent physical requirements demanded of team members.

"This means that they are not permitted to consume any alcohol."

News of dissent among staff at the Christmas Island facility comes as the Australian government faces criticism for operations in its detention centre network, including the separation of an asylum-seeker woman and her newborn baby.

Refugee advocate Pamela Curr was quick to speak out against the latest misconduct.

"A sexual relationship between a guard and a detainee is like a relationship between a student and a teacher, between a doctor and a patient. The power relationship is such an imbalance it can never be acceptable, it is exploitative," she told the ABC.

Serco said it had addressed the problems.

"After our investigation concluded in this matter, we held formal refresher training sessions for our staff across the immigration detention network, reinforcing the importance of professional boundaries and respect for the people in our care," Mr Shaw said.


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