With the end of furlough approaching, many businesses are having to think (if they haven’t already) about their plans going forward. Redundancies are one of the options that employers are having to consider, and we have had a number of enquiries from businesses across the UK who are exploring this.
Those working in care homes will need to be double vaccinated otherwise employees face being dismissed unless they are exempt for medical reasons. The justification behind the proposals were that it protected care home residents from serious illness or death related to Covid-19 infections.
The government has recently announced that covid vaccinations will become compulsory for those working in and those attending care homes from 11 November 2021. Changes to the law will mean that those working in care homes that are regulated by the Quality Care Commission must be double-vaccinated.
The government has recently announced that covid vaccinations will become compulsory for those working in care homes from 11 November 2021. This includes those who are employed by the care home and contractors who attend care homes to carry out work, such as builders, plumbers, electricians.
The crux of the matter was that the employee was dismissed for gross misconduct because the Employer became aware that he was visiting his local social club whilst off sick. The Employment Tribunal held that the decision to dismiss him was unfair for the reasons set out below.
Employee unfairly dismissed for raising concerns about Covid safety in the workplace. The Employment Tribunal in Gibson v Lothian Leisure has determined that an employee was unfairly dismissed for raising health and safety concerns regarding the employer’s Covid measures.
An Employment Tribunal in the case of Khatun v Winn Solicitors Limited has recently decided that an employee was unfairly dismissed for refusing to agree to certain changes to her contract of employment which the employer said were required because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
It is contrary to the Equality Act 2010 for employers to ask job applicants questions about their health before offering them employment. The reasoning for this is to avoid disability discrimination (whether consciously or unconsciously) in the recruitment process.
We know that sometimes even the best employers cannot help situations arising between members of staff. Training and team building exercises are a great way to help encourage staff to deal with issues to avoid situations like arguments occurring between employees but sometimes this is not enough.
Responses to a survey from 500 employees indicated that those returning from furlough feel more disconnected from work in comparison to non-furloughed employees and this includes a significant drop in personal confidence by those furloughed since the scheme was introduced in March 2020.
