Posted: 10th September 2020
September is traditionally the time when children go back to school in England and Wales and we all start preparing for the autumn term. This year however, will not be quite the same. Whilst schools may be open, there are still discussions about how things will have changed for both the children and the staff. Social distancing (or maybe we should more accurately refer to it as “physical distancing”?) will make things more difficult than usual. The evidence is not yet clear on the risks to the students and their teachers, but it does mean that the childcare issues that had prevented so many employees from working during the lock-down will now be partly resolved. There will still be some who may find that after-school provision or nursery placements may not be available to the same extent as they were previously, so employers will have to work with their employees to find the best arrangement to address the staff availability issues over the coming months.
Remote Working
We also have the problems of employees returning from overseas holidays to discover that the rules changed whilst they were away such that they will have to quarantine themselves for 14 days on return, as well as the gradual phasing out of the flexible furlough scheme. All of these are covered in this edition of the newsletter along with news of some exciting new services that Cherington HR can now offer to help you find out how staff who have been working from home are coping, as well as train managers on how to manage staff remotely.
Redundancy Toolkit
Sadly some businesses have had to make posts redundant and I have been helping many businesses mange that process. As a result, I have developed a new toolkit for businesses who need guidance to run that process themselves and there is more information on that below.
There are lots of articles about Covid-19 and other developments in employment on the Cherington HR website and these can all be found with all the previous news articles. Please keep referring back to this as new articles about any other changes to the Covid-19 situation as it affects employers will be posted as I am made aware of them.
And Finally…
I have some really exciting news to reveal about Cherington HR later this month. It is currently embargoed, so I can’t say any more at the moment, but all will be revealed in a fortnight. Watch this space!
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