HR in the Second Autumn of the Pandemic
In Autumn 2021, with the pandemic still very much around, but life getting “back to normal”, here are some key considerations in the movable feast that is employment law…
Health and Safety Issues
Employers must continue, as far as is reasonably practicable, to ensure the health, safety and welfare of their employees. We continue to encourage risk assessments and policy updating to ensure compliance in this crucial area, where the consequences for failing to comply can impose criminal liabilities for the employer.
Vaccination Policies
These should now have been firmly put in place, with the advice being to “encourage but not force” staff to be vaccinated. If holding the information about staff vaccinations, GDPR considerations and policies must be adhered to.
Flexible Working and hybrid working
The pandemic has shifted the way we think about flexible working. With many employees settling well into “wfh”, managing their role from home successfully during lockdown, and enjoying the associated lifestyle benefits, it is proving difficult for an employer to insist on a full-time return to the office. A current Government Consultation entitled “Making Flexible Working the Default” is seeking to promote flexible working and encourage a better discussion between the employer and the employee.
End of Furlough
With the Coronavirus Job Retentions Scheme now officially over, employers may be looking to restructure their workforce, which may lead to redundancy consultations.
Mental health Issues
Employers need to be alive to the fall out from the lockdown and pandemic more generally vis-à-vis their employees' mental health and look to support and assist employees with reasonable adjustments. Mental health illnesses can often mean the employee meets the definition of disability, as set out in the Equality Act 2010, and thus any unfair treatment can give rise to a claim for disability discrimination.
Tribunal Claims
Due to the general delay and backlog in the Employment Tribunal systems, we are now starting to see tribunals hearing Covid-19 related issues which arrived at the start of the pandemic. Cases have included whether the dismissal of an employee refusing to wear a face mask was fair, the treatment of pregnant woman being asked to work from home during lockdown, and whether employees made redundant should actually have been placed on furlough. All decisions are currently first instance, but they present a whole new set of facts and circumstance for the Employment Tribunals to consider.