Can your employees work from home?

I have worked on and off from home for more than twenty years so at least in regards to the practicalities of the arrangement I believe I have developed very effective strategies.

However, the strategies all revolve around avoiding distractions and getting work done, and that's essentially because I have always been self-employed and not really accountable to anyone. Sure, I still had to manage some expected challenges (distractions from family members)  and unexpected (eating too much) but I put things in place to manage these diversions and working from home soon became more productive than being at the office.

With the advent of the coronavirus pandemic, many companies have quickly adopted the practice of employees working from home and employees will no doubt work out how to do this effectively over time but what you, as an employer may not realise is the extent of responsibility you still have for your remote worker.

It may come as a surprise for example, that their home should be assessed for safety risks. This can be a self-assessment based on guidelines in a company policy; nevertheless, it needs to be done because the employer has a duty of care for employees working from home.

This is new territory for many companies, so it is well worth getting some expert advice. Fortunately, someone has already done the hard yards and published some guides to help you through the process.

The two guides below are published by IRIQ LAW

This Guide covers work from home policies and procedures

 

This guide covers managing coronavirus in the workplace.

These publications are an excellent investment in managing the risks around coronavirus and employees who work from home.

 

Jim Courtwood

Time & Attendance Consultant