WESTMINSTER — The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) decided to stop paying coastguard rescue officers from September and aims to classify them as volunteers. This decision follows a Court of Appeal ruling in January that confirmed these officers are workers, not volunteers.

Conservative MP Joe Robertson accused maritime minister Keir Mather of misleading MPs regarding the legal status of coastguard rescue officers. Robertson stated, "The government and MCA must stop peddling this line … It is simply not true and the minister should know better." He also noted, "The court found that CROs are already workers, which is hardly surprising considering they get hourly pay and payslips." Lord Justice Bean, who presided over the January ruling, had cited the payment for time spent on callouts as a reason for their worker status.

The MCA initially stated that its changes were a mandated consequence of the Court of Appeal judgment. However, on June 19, the agency acknowledged the ruling did not specify any particular model for the agency to adopt. Five days later, Virginia McVea, chief executive of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, told a meeting of MPs that the judge's ruling had left the MCA with no choice. Liberal Democrat MP Alistair Carmichael said McVea had attempted to mislead MPs, an account the MCA did not dispute.

McVea also informed MPs that an internal survey indicated 93% support for the volunteer model. However, the survey results showed no direct attempt to measure support for either a volunteer or worker model, instead asking officers how each model would affect their availability. The MCA included individuals who stated they would be less able to respond to calls as volunteers, as well as those who replied 'other,' among those it claimed supported the volunteer model. Survey results indicated that a similar calculation for the worker model would have garnered more support than the MCA claimed for the volunteer model.

Employment lawyer Nigel Mackay, a partner at Leigh Day, stated it would have been within the MCA's power to maintain worker status and flexibility. The MCA had claimed it would need to implement formal employment requirements to preserve worker status. Mackay commented, "Effectively, [worker status] is just slightly more expensive."

Why It Matters

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency's decision to reclassify coastguard rescue officers as volunteers, despite a Court of Appeal ruling affirming their worker status, has drawn scrutiny from members of Parliament and legal experts. This change impacts the operational model of the agency and the employment status of its rescue officers, who gathered in Westminster on Wednesday to voice their concerns. The controversy centers on differing interpretations of the court's judgment and the agency's representation of internal survey data to justify the shift.