Employers - the World Cup is nigh and so are requests for time off
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by Trevor Sturgess
Bosses should be ready for a flood of requests for time-off
during the football World Cup.
And they need to think about what they should do if they are
faced with a sudden outbreak of "sickies".
Many employers are already worrying about possible employment
issues which will arise during the World Cup, says Maidstone-based
law firm Gullands.
So how can employers deal with problems that arise from absences
around the World Cup which may affect their ability to maintain
business as usual?
Although the timetable for England matches is more conducive
this year to the standard working day it will still affect the
working day, particularly shift workers, and may result in requests
to shorten the working day to get home in time for kick-off.
Amanda Finn, a solicitor and head of employment law at Gullands,
says: "As a starting point it is a good idea to remind all staff of
the company's policy for requesting time off and notification of
sickness absence.
"An employer does not have to accept a holiday request but it is
important all staff are treated fairly and consistently. If you do
decide to make allowances for changes in hours to accommodate
matches then it is important that it is stressed that this is a
temporary arrangement and that employers deal with other staff
requests unrelated to football with similar sympathy.
"Without seeking to make assumptions about the gender of
football fans, it is likely that if an employer has agreed to a
small alteration in hours for its male employees a refusal of a
request for alteration to a female member of staff's hours for
other reasons could lead to claims of discrimination."
If a company is going to take a harder line in relation to
sickness absence during the World Cup it is important employees are
told about this before and that the procedure does not depart from
any contractual scheme.
Employers will have to be very sure of their facts to take
disciplinary action and in any event should be careful to follow
the ACAS statutory code of practice to avoid the risk of an
employment tribunal.
Wednesday, June 09 2010
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