Dealing with a return to work and keeping staff safe from Coronavirus
29th June 2020
It
has been roughly 3 months since the UK went into a “lockdown” due to the
coronavirus. It is estimated that the Furlough scheme is covering the pay of
nearly one quarter of the UK’s workforce. The take-up of the scheme has been
higher than the Government initially anticipated. The Government claims to have
paid some £8 Billion under the scheme so far, with an average pay-out of
£1,269.
The
furlough scheme may have been designed to convince employers not to make staff
redundant, and keep them on a “stand-by” mode. But in the meantime, the bills
keep coming in, even if the staff are not. A huge number of employers depend on
people coming into their site, be that staff at a factory, or staff in a shop,
restaurant, bar, hairdressers etc. Without that flow of people and business,
there is little doubt that many businesses will struggle to survive, even if
the wage costs are largely covered by the furlough scheme for a few
months.
The
Bank of England is also now predicting that the UK is facing the deepest
economic turndown since 1706, and this itself is based on a model assuming that
the social distancing measures are gradually eased between June and September
this year. The mainstream media remains full of stories on or relating to the
coronavirus, including the daily figures on deaths related to COVID -19
(although it must be said that it is unclear as to how many people in the
figures died “of” or “with” the virus).
The
Chancellor, Rishi Sunak expressed caution as to how long the furlough scheme
can continue, indicating that the costs of the scheme are not sustainable, and
has stated that he is working on ways of winding down the scheme and easing
people back into work in a measured way.
For
whatever it is worth, it is our observation that there are certainly more
vehicles on the road now than there were a couple of weeks ago, suggesting that
people are slowly but surely returning to work. We also have some business
clients reporting that they are returning a skeleton staff to work where
previously no work was being done. This appears to indicate that businesses are
reaching the point that they are having to face the decision of either
returning to work (or at least in part), or consider the real possibility that
their businesses will be unable to recover if the total cessation of work continues
any longer.
However,
a large number of people have concerns on any possible return to work in the
foreseeable, let alone near, future.
The
Government is proposing to consult over measures to enable the return to work.
On the 3rd May, Michael Gove MP announced that the Government was in
consultation with employers and trade unions. According to a report in
Personnel Today (Government consults on draft return to work guidelines - 4th
May 2020) the proposals include additional hygiene procedures, physical
screens, and the use of protective equipment if social distancing of two metres
between workers is not possible. The Prime Minister announced the first steps
in the roadmap for easing the lockdown on Sunday 10th May 2020.
Michael Gove referred to a “phased return” in his briefing on the 4th
May.
Subsequently,
the Government has published sector focused guidelines on enabling a safe
return to work for workers in England.
It
is likely that in order to maintain health and safety, the plans for most
employers to resume work will include such measures as staggering shift times,
maximising home-working, etc. It does look likely that some businesses, such as
restuarants, will be required to remain closed for some time yet.
It
may prove challenging to convince some staff to return to work on any basis.
However, it is also likely that many will want to return as soon as possible in
order to return to some resemblance of normality and in the hope of resuming
their normal full rate of salary after coping with a reduced rate for some
weeks.
Employers
will need to take a variety of steps to ensure that they meet their legal
obligations with regard to the health and safety of their staff at work, and to
meet the needs of their insurers too. It
is our view that insurers as well as employees will want and need businesses to
introduce robust policies before allowing their staff to return to work while
the threat of the coronavirus is still with us. Risk assessments will need and
recorded (to prove to staff and insurers alike that the business is addressing
the health and safety issues concerned). We have little doubt that generic
existing policies may regarded as inadequate by both worried staff and business
insurers. This means that employers should produce risk assessments addressing
the particular issues and concerns relating to the coronavirus. Therefore,
matters such as social distancing in the workplace, increased hand washing,
guidance on proper handwashing and other cleaning (such as cleaning of office
and business equipment and work surfaces) should be included in the range of
risk assessments to be produced. Measures to limit and management the numbers
of people entering premises should be covered.
Some
employers may wish to review the need for expensive office space, particularly
if home-working has proved successful. Obviously, there are management steps
that come with homeworking, such as effective measuring of work and maintaining
confidentiality that need to be addressed. However, in our experience these
matters are achievable with the right staff, and with the right commitment from
managers. There can be a lot of suspicion over those that are working from
home, but equally we find that many workers that appear to be in the office or
workplace all day are not necessarily more productive as a result of that!
We
have often come across businesses that are quick to challenge the issue and
claimed costs of having people work from home, but then fail to see that the
office space and use of that office space is also expensive (think of the
cleaning costs, heating costs, lighting cost, etc associated with each worker
in the office, let alone the rental costs).
Managing
the perception of safety will be just as important as managing the actual
safety requirements, and this need to manage the perceptions of staff will only
increase with the extension of the time they are not in the workplace.
Communication with staff will be key to managing the perception of health
risks, so we believe that businesses should be keeping in touch with all their
staff, and increase that communication in the run up to any re-opening of
offices and workplaces. Staff should be told of the measures that the business
will be taking in additional to the existing steps, to safeguard their health
at work. For some businesses it may also be helpful to ask their staff for any
particular suggestions (though this may in turn need to be managed, as there
will be costs as well as practical issues to take into account).
Employers
need to remember the law protecting staff from risks to their health at work,
(see our article in April 2020 on this topic). To address this issue, clear
communication with staff over the steps being taken to enable a safe return to
work is vital.
If
you need any further advice on any matter raised in this article do not
hesitate to contact us at Hallett
Employment Law Services Ltd.