The Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) has today
published a response to the planned introduction of minimum
service levels (MSLs) in the education sector.
The proposed legislation, which ASCL vehemently opposes, would
give employers the option of issuing work notices requiring
individuals to work during strike action in order to deliver a
minimum level of provision.
ASCL’s consultation response states that these regulations will
put school leaders in the impossible position of seeking to
maintain good employee relations across their team while
simultaneously being expected to enact legislation that will
cause irreparable harm. It is also ASCL’s view that the
regulations will disproportionally affect the ability of school
leaders and other specialist staff to take strike action, as they
are more likely to be required to work.
Carl Parker, ASCL’s Head of Industrial Relations, said: “The
introduction of MSLs in education will do muchmore harm than
good. These regulations effectively remove the right to strike
for some staff and will damage relations among others. As well as
being profoundly illiberal, MSLs risk exacerbating the
recruitment and retention crisis by watering down workers’ rights
and further erasing the good will that exists within the
profession.
“None of this serves the interests of children and young people.
The best way to protect pupils in circumstances where strike
action may occur is for constructive dialogue to take place at
the earliest opportunity and within the framework of an
adequately funded education system. Riding roughshod over the
rights of employees is the response of a government that has lost
the argument.”
ASCL’s full consultation response is available here.
