Check That Your Employer Has These Things In Place Before Going Back To Work

October 18 2020 - Across the country, more and more people are starting to go back to work after months of uncertainty as the government continue to remove or reduce some of the current restrictions and guidelines in place to prevent the spread of Covid-19.

If you're one of the people now getting prepared to go back to work, you may be feeling mixed emotions. On the one side, you'll likely feel relieved to know that you're able to go back and start earning money again and also get some sense of normality back.

On the other, you're possibly feeling apprehensive about what the new situation is going to look like and whether or not it's even safe to be going back to work.

As an employee in the UK, there are many laws and regulations in place to ensure that you're safe and protected at work, and now in these times, it's even more important that work health and safety laws are taken seriously by employers.

So, if you have any concerns about being asked to go back into work, then we've put this post together with some things you should check that your employer has in place before you do:

A Proper Cleaning System:

Now more than ever, it's important that work stations, offices and anywhere that people will be working for extended periods of time are sufficiently clean and tidy.

Before even asking staff to come back in, your employer should look at either hiring a company that provides commercial coronavirus disinfection services or simply making sure that the place benefits from deep cleaning beforehand, and also that daily cleaning and disinfecting of work stations and any items being used is something that's happening.

Socially Distanced Workspaces:

The standard government advice when it comes to social distancing is still to keep 2m (6ft) apart when possible. If this isn't realistic, then 1m is also allowed. If you work in an office where previously desks were close together, then your employer will need to make sure that these are rearranged so as to keep as much distance between staff as possible.

Another way of ensuring social distancing is to allow staggered working times and even partial work from home so as to minimise the number of people in the workplace at one time.

Protective Equipment:

If requiring you to come back to work, then your employer is responsible for making sure the workplace is a safe place for you to be, and this means providing you with the relevant equipment.

This includes the basics, such as face masks and han sanitizer, but depending on the type of job you do and how much contact you're required to have with the public, then it can also include things like screens to keep people a good distance apart or even face visors and gloves.

Enforced Rules:

Every place of business should have rules for how things are done - whether this is how staff should be conducting themselves in work or how customers should be acting when they're visiting.

In these times, it's even more important that staff and customers feel protected, so there's no better time to have some new rules that are actually enforced.

This includes, asking customers to wear a mask before entering the premises, using provided hand sanitizers, forming a line outside to prevent too many people being inside at once, and also making sure that customers are respectful of these rules and boundaries at all times.

We hope this post has helped you feel a bit more confident about going back to work during these uncertain times. If you're unsure about the procedures your employer has in place, then you're within your rights to ask and can refuse to return until these have been implemented.

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