Not all employees will be required to return to work at the same time. This will depend on the nature of the service. Where not all employees are required to work manager’s must take the following factors into account :
- proximity
- role
- availability of transport for employees
- clinically vulnerable employees who are isolating
- clinically extremely vulnerable employees who are shielding
- childcare and other caring responsibilities and ages of children
- those with a disability and the duty to make reasonable adjustments.
Please note that those who have fully recovered from coronavirus should not be used as a criterion in planning those who return as is not known how long immunity (if any) will last.
Managers should assess risks and carry out a careful analysis of their staffing requirements deciding how many are physically needed in the workplace, who can work from home and who is not currently required to work.
Managers must ensure that those that are required to work are selected fairly and consistently across the workforce whilst balancing the needs of individual employees and promoting inclusion as much as possible.
Managers must also ensure that the rationale behind the decision as to who is required to work and who is not can be justified.
Clinically vulnerable and extremely vulnerable workers, and those with childcare/caring responsibilities should be prioritised to remain at home, taking account of the risk of age, sex and disability discrimination and, in particular, the duty to make reasonable adjustments for workers suffering from a qualifying disability.
Where a manager has determined that not all employees are required to return to work at the same time they should contact their Senior Business Partner who will support them in carrying out a selection exercise.