Keeping Scotland Safe and Strong - A Consultation on Reforming Police and Fire and Rescue Services in Scotland: Analysis of Consultation Responses

14. WORKFORCE ARRANGEMENTS

Question 22: What are your views on the workforce proposals for staff transferring to the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service? Are there any other workforce issues we should be considering?

Summary of proposals in the consultation document:

• Firefighters, officers, control room and support staff who are in post immediately before the new body is established should transfer to the new body on the day of establishment and should retain their terms and conditions of service on transfer.
• The SFRS to establish the terms and conditions which will apply for new officers and staff, and also decide whether to harmonise the terms and conditions of service for support staff previously employed by each of the eight existing Fire and Rescue Authorities/Joint Boards.
• Legislative and administrative arrangements to be put in place to ensure the firefighters remain eligible for the New Firefighters Pension scheme and control room staff and support staff remain eligible to continue in the Local Government Pension scheme (Scotland).

14.1 47 respondents from the following respondent categories addressed this question.

Respondent category	Number of respondents	Respondent category	Number of respondents
Pol Force		LA	18
PB		Vol	1
Pol Org		CPP	2
FRS	4	NHS
FB	4	Oth	8
Fire Org	6	Individuals	4

Note: Abbreviations used in the above table are described in Table 1.

Transitional arrangements

14.2 3 local authorities recommended that appropriate transition arrangements be put in place to ensure minimal disruption to operational delivery, and protect the safety of officers.

14.3 2 respondents called for consistent, clear, accurate and timely information on the reforms in order to minimise conjecture and concern amongst staff.

Harmonisation of pay and conditions

14.4 10 respondents (largely fire and rescue bodies) explicitly welcomed the proposal for those in post prior to transfer to retain their terms and conditions on transfer.

14.5 15 respondents highlighted the need to harmonise pay and conditions across the country under the single service. 4 of these considered that harmonisation work should be done prior to the launch of the new service, to reduce the likelihood of equal pay claims.

Support staff issues

14.6 8 respondents felt that greater consideration should be given to the transition of support staff to the new service. A general view was that support staff should not be adversely affected by the changes, yet the implications for their deployment within the single service were seen as lacking clarity.

14.7 11 respondents requested more information on whether the policy of no compulsory redundancies will apply to support staff.

Relocation issues

14.8 There was some concern that officers, firefighters and other staff may be requested to relocate geographically across Scotland. 2 respondents perceived this to be "unsettling" with another (Vol) arguing that no officer or staff member should be forced to serve elsewhere. The policy was seen as having the potential to affect certain staff (rural employees, women, part-time workers, older people and people with disabilities) disproportionately. 2 respondents queried how retained and part-time officers could be expected to re-locate if they had obligations to another, primary employer.

14.9 One respondent (LA) called for maximum use of technology and flexible working regimes in order to minimise the need for centralisation of functions.

Future of National Joint Council Scheme of Conditions of Service

14.10 9 respondents raised the issue of whether the "grey book"^[10] conditions should still apply in Scotland or whether the reforms provided the opportunity to create a new set of conditions reflecting a Scottish context and service.

Appointments

14.11 Only 2 respondents specifically emphasised their support for the proposals for new appointments. A further 4 respondents stated that they did not support the proposal for the first Chief Officer to be appointed by Scottish Ministers, but recommended this be undertaken by the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service Board, subject to the approval of Ministers.

Pensions

14.12 6 respondents called for clarity on the future of pensions for staff currently on the LGPS. One respondent (FRS) perceived the omission of any reference to the Firefighters' Pension Scheme to be concerning.

Other workforce issues

14.13 4 respondents requested more information on plans to downsize the service in the light of expectations that financial savings will be made.

Question 23: Please highlight evidence where the existing provisions in relation to the employment of police constables causes significant difficulties preventing fire and rescue services delivering their statutory duties. How would you differentiate between the correct duties a special constable/fire officer should follow if they attend an incident where both a crime is being committed and an emergency situation requires urgent action?

Summary of the proposal in the consultation document:

• Retention of the prohibition on police constables being employed as firefighters (under section 51 of the Fire (Scotland) Act 2005).

14.14 37 respondents addressed this question. Most of these were fire bodies and local authorities. Police bodies did not respond to the question, perhaps because it was included within the "Fire and Rescue" section of the consultation document. The full breakdown of respondent sector is below:

Respondent category	Number of respondents	Respondent category	Number of respondents
Pol Force		LA	14
PB		Vol	2
Pol Org		CPP	1
FRS	3	NHS
FB	4	Oth	4
Fire Org	5	Individuals	4

Note: Abbreviations used in the above table are described in Table 1.

14.15 Of the 31 respondents who provided a clear view, 20 supported retaining the prohibition on constables being employed as firefighters; 11 respondents recommended that the prohibition be lifted. Those supporting the status quo represented a balance of rural and urban locations. Those advocating the removal of the prohibition comprised largely rurally located respondents. Fire bodies and local authorities were represented in both camps.

Arguments in favour of retaining the prohibition

14.16 Few substantive arguments were presented in support of the status quo. The following were documented:

• Best to err on side of caution.
• Cannot be on call to 2 organisations at one time.
• Could cause confusion over responsibilities if prohibition lifted.
• The status quo does not present difficulties.

Arguments in favour of removing the prohibition

14.17 The following arguments were presented in favour of removal of the current prohibition:

• Police and fire services both have protecting life as a core policy.
• Permitting the employment of police constables as firefighters will be beneficial in rural, remote and island areas where there can be a shortage of individuals to fill such vacancies.
• There could be legal grounds for appeals against statutory restrictions on employment under the human rights legislation if the prohibition remains.
• The prohibition does not exist in England and Wales.
• It can be a major advantage at incidents to have one person with both police and firefighter experience and skills.
• Other professionals are not prohibited from becoming firefighters. Police should not be singled out in the Fire (Scotland) Act 2005.

"There are special constables who are also employed as RNLI members, Red Cross, Mountain Rescue operatives, Scottish Ambulance Service personnel…so why has the Fire Scotland Act 2005 identified that police constables are not eligible to be appointed by a fire authority?" (Ind)

Addressing potential difficulties between roles

14.18 6 respondents considered that potential conflicts and confusion at scenes could be addressed by the development of local agreements between Chief Constables and Chief Fire Officers. 2 respondents suggested that guidelines be drawn up and issued to Chief Constables and Chief Fire Officers. 2 others advocated "necessary safeguards" be put in place to minimise confusion.

14.19 Summary

• There was much support for current employees to retain their terms and conditions post reform.
• There was repeated emphasis on harmonising pay and conditions across the country, with some respondents recommending this be done prior to the launch of the new service.
• Further information was requested on how reform will impact on support staff.
• Concern was expressed that officers may be required to relocate across Scotland post reform.
• The majority view was in favour of retaining the prohibition on police constables being employed as firefighters.