Back to normal?
The mood in the country feels cautiously optimistic; we are now able to start planning and are looking forward to some semblance of normality following the turbulence of the last 14 months.
That said, we are not yet out of the woods; whilst the current guidance is for those who can work from home to continue to do so, it is hoped that by the 21 June 2021 we will be free from much of the tighter restrictions, including the requirement to work from home where we can.
The immediate considerations for this physical return to the workplace include:
· Working arrangements: home/office hybrid work patterns
· Whether to keep employees on furlough leave, or to start to bring some, or all back.
· Health and Safety – ensuring workplaces are safe
· Employees’ health
For most organisations, working from home arrangements will have been reactive as an immediate response to the restrictions imposed by the government in April 2020. The majority of organisations will not have any formal process in place for when the restrictions are lifted. For some employees, they may have not worked for all, instead spending this time furloughed, or on flexible furlough. Working from home may have suited some individuals, but it is likely to have presented a number of challenges for many.
Most businesses will have reflected over the past year whether the working from home arrangements have been successful, polls suggest that it has been positive overall. There now has to be engagement with colleagues to understand, on both a company wide, and individual level, what sort of working arrangements will be appropriate, practical and reasonable for the foreseeable future. Clear communication here will be key and could potentially reduce or even eradicate the need for organisations to deal with a number of flexible working requests from employees who may have become used to fitting in non work related activities around the working day.
If working from home is going to become the norm for many organisations for the majority of the time, thought needs to be given to providing new policies or updating existing ones relating to home working, including the organisations’ responsibilities for data protection, health and safety and insurance. Contracts of employment may also need to be updated to reflect the new working arrangements, especially if there is a change to working from home on a permanent basis.
Conversely, if employees are to return to the workplace, be it an office or a manufacturing/production environment, organisations are under a duty to ensure a safe working environment for workers and must be confident that employees have faith in the processes and procedures put in place to manage the spread of infection. This will be of particular concern to those employees with underlying health conditions, or those with household members who are clinically vulnerable. The government has issued guidelines for making workplaces safe - Working safely during coronavirus (COVID-19) - Guidance - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk). This is important because employees can refuse to return to work if they “reasonably” consider that the environment places them in “serious and imminent” danger, then any dismissal relating to this refusal could be deemed to be “automatically unfair”. The usual 2 year qualifying period for bringing a claim does not apply here, and we expect to see a rise in these types of claims over the coming months.
We have received a number of queries regarding testing and vaccination for employees. This is a very difficult area and there is no legal obligation on employers to do this as part of the safety measures as referred to above. Acas suggest that if an employer wishes to carry out testing of the workforce, it should first gain agreement with a works body (such as a trade union) and consider any concerns raised by employees, such as whether they will be paid in full if they have to self isolate. Vaccination is not something that we expect an employer to make mandatory for its employees as we consider that as long as the employer takes effective measures to protect its employees’ health as outlined above, this should be sufficient to limit any spread of the virus.
The long-term effects of the pandemic are yet to be seen, both from a health perspective and from an economic one.It is crucial that organisations take the time to understand any concerns or fears that workers may have about a physical return to work.Mental health was a key issue before the pandemic, many workers will still be struggling to come to terms with the changes that have been forced upon us during this time. We cannot expect to pick up where we left off, and it may be that out of a very dark period, some positive changes can be made which will enable a more cohesive working environment, allowing for greater flexibility and a more engaged workforce.We certainly expect that there will be more agile working but concerns have already been raised about how this may affect junior employees, many of whom need to be in the office to learn from peers, or those with caring responsibilities feeling alienated from colleagues who choose to return to the office more regularly. So, whilst hybrid working might have its benefits, there will be challenges for organisations to face along the way.
By Chloe Leyland