How has the pandemic impacted employment issues for RPs?

Recently, we have been seeing an explosion in DSARs, with RP employees wanting to see if they were exposed unnecessarily to COVID-19.

Employees are looking for evidence of breaches of health and safety and are usually coming from frontline workers who feel that their employer should have done more to protect them at the height of the pandemic.

If you get a DSAR, don’t panic and start collating documents with every mention of the person who has requested the data. Instead, speak to the employee first and try to narrow down the search parameters. In addition, don’t leave a DSAR until the last minute of the one-month deadline, as they can be very time-consuming. If in doubt, seek legal advice.

As stated, DSARs are often a precursor to an employment claim and to this end I have seen an increase in whistleblowing claims brought against RPs. These are generally employees alleging that there has been a breach of health and safety around COVID-19. Examples include when maintenance workers have been sent in to fix things in a property, such as a fence during lockdown, because they were classed as a frontline worker, but they claim that it was not essential and that it exposed them to unnecessary risk. We are also seeing a higher number of claims that include discrimination claims.

If you are hit by a claim of this nature, you need to be able to show that you carried out risk assessments and followed the government’s guidance given at the time. Documentary evidence will be key to defending any such claim.

Another ongoing issue as a result of COVID-19 is how to deal with vulnerable employees now that there is no longer the requirement for employees to isolate if they test positive.

Understandably, people who are vulnerable are resistant and scared of coming back into the workplace. The best policy is to engage in discussions with those employees and if they can work from home, find a resolution that works for both parties. If they can’t work from home and they won’t return to the workplace, then an option may be for them to take holiday or unpaid leave.

Agile working has become the norm for RPs, with many adopting hybrid ways of working. I fully expect this to continue, but would not be surprised if there was a slow creep of getting people back into the workplace more. The tube is already evidence of this, as passengers are back to standing like sardines.

One beneficial change for RPs has been that sickness levels have gone down during the pandemic. The number of employees who take time off for short-term illnesses has gone down significantly. It appears that if employees are working from home, they are much less likely to call in sick.

Another benefit has been that there are a lot fewer grievances being lodged against fellow employees. Working from home has meant employees haven’t seen each other as much, resulting in a dramatic drop in employee disputes.

Overall, the pandemic has changed the way employees work in many ways and has had a significant impact on RPs for better and for worse. Only time will tell if these changes in trends are here to stay or if they were simply a pandemic blip.

Katie Maguire, partner – employment and pensions, Devonshires