Covid-19 has affected us all, and many employees are wondering what work life will be like after furlough. So here’s our simple guide for employees, including topics to discuss with your employer before you go back to work.
Government guidelines
Current government guidelines state that you should:
- Work from home if possible
- If you have to go into work, then try to travel outside peak times
This also applies if you were previously advised to shield because you were labelled ‘clinically vulnerable’ to coronavirus.
Meanwhile, your employer should:
- Discuss your working arrangements with you
- Take steps to help you work from home if possible
- Carry out a risk assessment
- Ensure your workplace is Covid-secure
If your employer fails to create a safe working environment, you don’t have to return to work and might be able to take legal action against them.
Ending furlough
You have no legal right to stay on furlough.
When your furlough period first started (or when it was extended), your employer should have told you what happens when it ends, including the amount of notice they’ll give you.
Note that there’s no set period of notice that an employer has to give to end furlough, however, the usual standard is 48 hours. Talk to your employer if they don’t give you long enough, for example, because you need more time to arrange childcare.
Returning to work
Going back to the workplace must be “necessary, safe and mutually agreed”, so the first step is a conversation with your employer. Your aim is to reach agreement about how necessary and safe it is to go back.
Ensuring a Covid-safe workplace
Here are some of the changes your employer should implement to ensure your working environment is as safe as possible:
- Allow enough space for social distancing
- Provide you and your colleagues with personal protective equipment (PPE), and publish instructions on using it properly
- Set up hygiene facilities e.g. hand-washing stations, and issue instructions on using them properly
- Provide a regular supply of hand sanitiser
- Ensure the workplace is regularly cleaned and disinfected
Those are some of the questions you could ask in your conversation with your employer, because you need to be confident that all those elements will be in place before you return.
Commuting safely
Fear of travelling on public transport won’t be considered a good reason not to return to work.
Talk to your employer to see if there are safer ways you could get there and back. For example:
- Flexible working so you can travel outside peak hours
- Private transport such as taxis or company mini-bus
- Free parking
Be sure to discuss any transport closures or reduced services that will affect your journey, so you can come to a suitable arrangement.
When you can say no
You CAN’T refuse to return because you’re concerned about catching coronavirus at work. When your employer has done all they can to ensure employee safety (as listed above), the risks should be no greater at work than they are anywhere else. If you refuse to go back, it could count as ‘unauthorised absence’, meaning that your employer can take disciplinary action against you or even dismiss you.
You CAN refuse to return if you or anyone in your household has symptoms of coronavirus. In that case, you should self-isolate and not go back to work otherwise you risk infecting others. If you lose your job because you’re self-isolating, it would count as unfair dismissal under the Employment Rights Act 1996 and you could make a claim against your employer.
Changing your contract
Many companies have been adversely affected by the pandemic, so your employer may want change your pay, working days or working hours when you return.
Note that they can only do this if:
- Your contract has a ‘flexibility clause’ which allows for the change
- You agree to the changes
- Your trade union agrees (if relevant)
- Your employer consults with staff representatives (if there are more than 20 people affected)
Impact on holidays
Even if you’ve been on furlough, you still accrue holiday in the usual way.
If you have been unable to take holiday due to the effects of coronavirus, you can now carry over up to four weeks’ holiday into the next two holiday years.
If you plan to travel overseas, talk to your employer before you go, because you may need to quarantine when you get back.
They can ask whether your trip is essential. They can also ask you to work from home or from the quarantine hotel (on full pay), or to include the quarantine period in your paid (or unpaid) annual leave.
Your rights
If you believe your employer has acted unlawfully, here’s what to do:
- Talk to them about your concerns
- Raise a formal grievance
- Discuss it with your union or Citizens’ Advice
- Contact Acas
- Talk to an employment lawyer
- Bring a claim to an employment tribunal
Note there is a time limit, usually three months from dismissal or the behaviour you’re complaining about. Like many organisations, employment tribunals are busy catching up with the backlog, so it may be a while before your case is heard.
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