It comes as more than 750,000 public-sector workers prepare to walk out in an escalating row over government plans to force them to retire later and contribute more towards their taxpayer-funded pension schemes.
The strike will involve members of two teaching unions, the NUT and the Association of Teachers and Lecturers, as well as the Public and Commercial Services Union. Talks between ministers and the unions broke down last night and there are growing fears within government that some union leaders are “hell-bent” on holding “crippling” strikes.
As tensions between ministers and union activists escalated, schools were warned against bringing in supply teachers to cover for striking teachers and told any moves to plug gaps in the timetable with permanent staff would be “very damaging” to morale.
The NUT distributed guidance to 21,000 head teachers earlier this month, warning them that they could be in breach of a series of employment regulations by attempting to keep schools open.
All heads should carry out a risk assessment to make sure they can suitably supervise lunch breaks, offer a full or partial curriculum and cover all lessons, the union said, adding that schools “will not be able to ask staff who are not involved in the strike to undertake work beyond their normal job description”.
The letter said it was “unlawful” for employment agencies to make supply teachers available to cover for striking teachers. Making permanent staff cover for absent colleagues can also be “very damaging to ongoing staff-management relations and can lead to conflict with the unions not currently taking action”, according to the NUT.
The letter states: “However much your [local authority] or governors may want you to keep the school open, the NUT believes that the safety of pupils and remaining staff should be the key factor in making your decision.
“Heath and safety legislation is not suspended during industrial action and the employer will continue to be required to meet their statutory obligations. You will need to weigh such considerations against the loss of a day’s education for the pupils.”
A Whitehall source criticised the intervention. “Union leaders are pocketing six-figure salaries and gold-plated pensions,” the source said. “They’re now disrupting the lives of millions of hard-working taxpaying families. Their bullying attempts to disrupt schools even further by threatening heads is a disgrace. Union leaders are doing huge damage to the reputation of teachers.”
John Dixon, head of the NUT’s organising and membership department, dismissed claims that the union was attempting to bully heads as “ludicrous”.
“This is standard advice setting out the facts for head teachers in the run-up to industrial action,” he said.
The intervention comes just days before hundreds of thousands of teachers stage the biggest coordinated walkout since the mid-1980s.
Figures obtained by The Daily Telegraph show that as many as nine in 10 schools in some parts of England and Wales are already preparing to close — or partly shut — during the strike.
Last week, Michael Gove, the Education Secretary, wrote to heads and governors, telling them it was their “moral duty” to break the strike. At the weekend, Mr Gove also said parents could volunteer to help keep schools open.
Yesterday, a Downing Street spokesman said that only parents who have had criminal records checks would be allowed into schools to help. “I don’t think there is any suggestion that CRB restrictions should be lifted. That is why the letter is worded as it is worded, talking about the wider school community; these would be people who would be involved in supporting the schools in other ways.”
Last night, after leaving the latest talks, Mark Serwotka, general secretary of the Public and Commercial Services Union, described the meeting as “a farce” and said the Government had shown no interest in negotiating on the dispute’s “key principles”.
In a statement, Francis Maude, the Cabinet Office minister, and Danny Alexander, Chief Secretary to the Treasury said: “We believe both sides have a responsibility to see the talks through and we would urge public workers not to strike while they are ongoing.
“Public service pensions will still be among the very best, with a guaranteed pension which very few private sector staff now enjoy.
“We can assure the public now that we have rigorous contingency plans in place to ensure that their essential services are maintained during the strike action on Thursday.”
SOURCE: telegraph.co.uk
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