Employment Law: Lifting of Plan B Restrictions | February 2022
The lifting of Plan B restrictions that took place at the end of last month has brought with it a number of issues for employers and employees to consider. In this month's update, we highlight a few of these areas including guidance surrounding returning to the workplace.
Employers now have the choice to bring back employees who have been working from home, due to the new guidance from the government. Not forgetting however, that employers still have a duty to care to protect the health and safety of their employees. So, it is important for employers to listen and respond to any concerns employees may have about returning to the office, particularly if they are vulnerable or they have been working from home for some time. On this basis, it is necessary to review the working arrangements of your workforce and consider which employees you require to return to the workplace. This would involve such things as:
- Reviewing any COVID measures in the workplace
- Decide whether you want to keep them
- Communicate to employees which measures will remain or be removed and why e.g. wearing face coverings
- Listen to employees individual concerns
- Explore reasonable adjustments where this can be facilitated
Most importantly, it is vital that employers take the individual circumstances of the employee into consideration and ensure that you do not discriminate against anyone by requiring them to attend the premises.
But what options are there for the employer where the employee refuses to return to the workplace? One such recent case involved an employee with a ‘belief in a fear of catching Covid-19 and a need to protect herself and others - X v Y December 2021’. In this instance, the Employment Tribunal decided that the employee’s fear of catching COVID-19, and her belief that she needed to protect herself and her partner from catching it, was not a protected belief for the purposes of discrimination legislation and she lost the case. However whilst this highlights one example, employers are reminded that this ruling was specific to the circumstances in this case.
Employers should remember that employees in this and similar situations may have other valid claims for refusing to return to work - a further example may be if an employee raises concerns about the safety of the workplace.
So what can the employer do? Employers are strongly advised to first take legal advice if there is an intention to act against any member of staff who refuses to return to the workplace.
This information is for general guidance only and is not legal advice. It should not be regarded or relied upon as a complete or authoritative statement of the law. However, if you have any HR issues on this or any other HR matters and would like to talk them through with our team, please contact us.
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