Prison officers at two major jails have walked off the job over a sentence for an inmate who assaulted four of their colleagues.

Workers at Cessnock Correctional Centre, in the NSW Hunter region, and Bathurst Correctional Centre, west of Sydney, are striking after a local court gave Cameron Welsh a "slap on the wrist".

Welsh assaulted four prison officers at the Cessnock prison in an incident earlier in 2025, with all four taken to hospital and two left unable to work again.

But on Wednesday, a magistrate did not add extra time to the 26-year-old's current sentence, leaving prison workers incensed and concerned over their safety.

"This tells the community it's OK to bash prison officers, that you won't be punished if you do and you'll be able to return to the community," Public Service

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