Plans for lifting the current lockdown revealed

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has set out his plan for lifting the current lockdown, balancing continued caution with the need to restore freedoms and boost the economy.

Data not dates will be the watchword, Mr Johnson said, so the possibilities listed below are all subject to change if evidence shows that new problems have arisen.

Four tests

In addition, the lockdown will be lifted in stages subject to the following tests:

  • the vaccine rollout continues to be successful;
  • the number of hospital admissions and deaths continues falling;
  • pressure on the NHS does not reach un acceptable levels; and
  • consideration is given to the impact of any variants of the virus.

Four steps to leaving lockdown

To allow for proper assessment of the impact and to allow people time to prepare, there will be “at least” five weeks between each of the following four steps:

Step one

Step 1 from 8th March 2021 will be focused on schools. Pupils in all schools and further education settings will return to face-to-face teaching with breakfast and after school clubs reopened together with sporting activities for children “where necessary to help parents to work”.

One person from outside someone’s household can be met socially outside the home and preparations will go ahead for elections to take place on 6th May. In addition, every care home resident will be able to nominate one visitor from 8th March.

From 29th March 2021 , the rule of six will return (including in private gardens). Tennis and basketball can resume and outdoor pools reopen. People must still work from home if possible but there will no longer be a legal requirement to stay at home.

Step 2

Step 2 from 12th April will mean, if the above is working and passing the four tests, that hairdressers, nail salons, non-essential retail, gyms, libraries and holiday lets can re-open. Pubs and restaurant can open for outdoor service with no curfew and no requirement for alcohol to be accompanied by a scotch egg or any other substantial meal.

Step 3

Step 3, no earlier than 17th May, will see the return of the rule of six for indoor meetings with groups of up to 30 allowed in outdoor settings. Pubs and restaurants can resume serving indoors and theatres, cinemas and concert halls will reopen as will some sports stadia (up to 10,000 people or a quarter of the stadium’s capacity, whichever is the lowest). Up to 30 people can attend weddings, receptions, funerals and wakes.

Step 4

Step 4, finally, and no earlier than 21st June, the last restrictions will be lifted including on weddings and nightclubs. However, the removal of restrictions on large events and performances may involve using testing to reduce the risk of infection.

Weather Warnings

Vast weather warnings across the UK have been announced due to a blast of cold air from the east. Adverse weather, and the knock-on effects, can cause significant disruption to organisations’ business operations and affect staffs’ ability to safely travel to work.

Being dubbed by some as ‘Beast from the East 2’, wintery weather is causing disruption to certain parts of the country, and will continue to do so until at least Wednesday this week, and organisations must be ready for this, particularly if their employees are not currently working from home.

Closure of the workplace 

Weather conditions, or the after effects of extreme weather, may lead to a complete closure of the workplace or separate office locations. Unless there is a contractual right to be placed on unpaid lay off, staff are entitled to be paid in full for any hours they would have worked had the workplace been open. If the organisation chooses to open later or close earlier because of the weather conditions, employees are also entitled to be paid for this time even though they have carried out less work than normal.

If the organisation closes due to bad weather, it should not seek to place employees on furlough under the Job Retention Scheme unless it is eligible to do so. In other words, the organisation will need to show that they have seen a business downturn as a result of the pandemic; enforced closure due to weather will not be enough.

Staff traveling into work 

Staff are expected to make every reasonable effort to get to work, even if unable to arrive on time, unless they are notified in advance that they should not travel to work. Lateness does not have to be paid for, as normal, although the organisation may wish to agree with the employee to make up the time lost to ensure their pay is not docked.

Where staff are unable to make it in to work and their workplace is open for business, they are not entitled to be paid unless their contract says otherwise. This is a harsh stance to take, however, as the absence isn’t due to their actions and is likely to be because of travel or safety reasons. There are options that can be considered by the organisation. The first is to consider allowing employees to take short-notice annual leave for this period to ensure they are still receiving full pay, although they will use up some of their holiday entitlement. Other options include using banked lieu hours or making up the time at a later date.

Working from home

Due to current coronavirus restrictions across the UK, staff should be working from home if they can and organisations should be working to facilitate this where possible. In normal times, allowing staff to work from home during periods of bad weather can allow them to continue working and receiving their normal salary despite workplace closure. If their ability to do this is disrupted due to the weather, staff should still be paid as normal.

Outside disruptions 

If the workplace remains open and the employee is able to travel to work, there may be circumstances where the employee is absent from work because their childcare arrangements have been disrupted by the weather. Employees have a statutory right to a reasonable amount of time off to deal with emergency situations involving dependants and this will cover the breakdown in care arrangements. This time off is usually unpaid, although this will depend on the organisation’s policy.

 

Flexible working opportunities for all

New research by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) has revealed that nearly half of employees do not have flexible working in their current role.

In response, and to promote fairness and inclusion at work, the CIPD is launching a new campaign, #FlexFrom1st, encouraging employers to support flexible working for all.

To reinforce these principles, the Institute is also calling for a change in the law in order to make the right to request flexible working a day-one right for all employees.

The survey of over 2000 employees found that while the current pandemic has driven a huge increase in working from home, 44% of employees have not worked from home at all since the beginning of the crisis.

92% of those employees say that this is because the nature of their job does not allow them to.

Around a fifth (19%) of employees say they work for organisations that do not offer any flexible working arrangements while twice as many (41%) say it is unfair that some people can work from home while others have to continue to attend their place of work and have little flexibility in how they work.

CIPD Chief Executive, Peter Cheese, said: ‘We need a new understanding about what flexible working is and we need employers to embrace flexible working arrangements beyond home working, to give opportunity and choice to all. Employees may not always be able to change where they work, but they should have more choice and a say in when and how they work.’

Those without access to flexible working are around twice as likely to be dissatisfied in their job, compared to those who do, he pointed out.

CIPD research has clearly identified the benefits of flexible working arrangements for employers and employees: from improved wellbeing and work-life balance to greater productivity.

Full details of the “Flex from 1st” campaign can be found here.