HR Expert: COVID facemasks
A client wants to know if they should stop asking their employees to wear face coverings at work given the change in government guidance on this. 

As an organisations your employer’s duty of care to safeguard the health, safety and wellbeing of their employees has not changed just because the Government says that people don’t have to wear face coverings anymore. When making their decision, your client should consider the nature of the workforce and listen to individual concerns. There are likely to be some employees who can’t wait not to have to wear a face covering anymore. However, as face coverings are worn to protect people around an individual rather than the wearer themselves, there are also likely to be a number of employees who are concerned about the implications of not wearing a face covering. For example, your client might have a lot of young staff who have not had the opportunity to get fully vaccinated yet, or vulnerable/extremely vulnerable staff who are concerned about colleagues not wearing face coverings.

Your client should review its coronavirus risk assessments in view of the changes. This will help them decide on which controls, such as the continued wearing of face coverings, might need to be retained. Then they should update their policy on face coverings in the workplace and communicate it to all staff, so employees know where they stand.

If they decide to make face coverings mandatory in the workplace, they should remember that some employees may continue to be exempt.

Alternatively, their policy may be that face coverings are no longer required but staff can wear a face covering if they want to, or that face coverings are required only in certain circumstances, such as meetings over a certain size, etc.

Your client should be prepared for possible resistance from whichever group has not got their preferred outcome. Employees should be expected to comply with workplace rules set by organisations. However, to manage any such resistance, your client should listen to individual circumstances and explain how these have been taken into account in your risk assessments.

Bear in mind that it’s not just in the actual workplace that employees may be concerned; public transport may be a worry to some employees, if others are no longer wearing face coverings, especially at peak travel times.

In all, your client should Have a clear, reasonable policy and be prepared to justify their approach.

 


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