The new rules will enact the European directive on fixed-term work. They protect temporary workers from being treated less favourably than permanent staff and limit the number of times contracts can be renewed. <> Joe Boone, assistant secretary for the NASUWT, says some authorities are failing to tell governors they can’t get rid of staff at the end of a year without good reason. The union is pressing for the extension of regulations to agency staff, but a European directive designed to protect them is in the pipeline.