work office chairWith guidance to work from home set to end in England from 19 July, Citizens Advice sets out your need to knows if you’re asked to return to your normal workplace.

I’ve been working from home, can my employer ask me to return to my normal workplace?

The short answer is yes. When you enter into a contract to work for an employer you have to comply with ‘reasonable management requests’. That means your employer can ask you to return to your normal workplace if your original contract specified that you would be office-based or based elsewhere. 

In practice, many employers are looking into or actively encouraging a blended working model - some time at home - some time in the office/workplace.

You can ask to keep working from home, but that doesn't mean your employer has to agree. Start by having an open conversation with your employer about your wishes, and consider making a flexible working request, which is a legal right all employees have. You can include your reasons why working from home is better for you and will also help the business.

What can I do if I’m worried about safety measures at work?

Your employer has a legal duty under the law, and under your contract, to ensure that your workplace does not pose a risk to your health and safety. Current guidance says employers should complete a Covid risk assessment and take steps to prevent transmission, including frequent cleaning and social distancing. This is due to be updated.

While wearing a mask in an enclosed space will no longer be mandatory, employers will still be free to set their own policies or rules in place to require workers or customers to wear masks. 

If you are unhappy with safety measures at your workplace, you could report your employer to the Health and Safety Executive, but ideally you and your employer can solve the issues together.

I’m uncomfortable about taking public transport, what are my options?

Your employer’s duty is limited to things that are under its control, and so there is no clear legal position about whether it has to take into account the risks you face when travelling to and from work, as part of its health and safety assessment.

That said, your employer should listen to your concerns if you’re worried about having to use public transport after being called back into work. You could reach an arrangement that you’re comfortable with, for example, asking to travel at quieter times of the day.

What happens if I need to self-isolate?

You shouldn’t go into work if you're self-isolating because you have coronavirus symptoms or have been in contact with someone who has tested positive for coronavirus. 

You must tell your employer that you have to self-isolate. It’s worth telling them in writing so you have a record for later use. 

If you’re unable to work from home, you may be entitled to benefits, sick pay or a self-isolation payment of £500 from your local council. If you’ve been furloughed before by your employer, you might also be able to furlough you for the period you need to self-isolate. See the Citizens Advice website for more information.

Remember that the rules on self-isolating are changing. From 16 August, if you've had your second vaccination, you won't need to self-isolate if you have been in contact with someone who's tested positive for coronavirus. If you have symptoms you'll need to self-isolate until you get tested.

Matthew Bradbury, Employment Expert at Citizens Advice, said:

“With restrictions ending and workplaces reopening, people will understandably have questions about their rights. While you can ask to continue working from home, your employer doesn’t have to agree. 

“If you have any concerns, it’s important to talk with your employer as soon as possible so that you can reach a solution that works for both of you. 

“For more information visit the Citizens Advice website, and if you need one-to-one help contact your nearest Citizens Advice.”

Need advice?

  • To speak to an adviser over the phone Call freephone 0800 144 88 48. Lines are open Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm

 

First published Tuesday 13 July 2021


 

Citizens Advice Wiltshire

Latest service update - Spring 2024

We’re a local charity that gives advice over the phone, by email and on web chat, while reserving our face to face support for when it's most needed.

However, we are not running a drop-in service, so please call us, or email us first. This way we can work out how best to help.

Here’s how to get in touch...

Signage web

How can we help?

whatever the problem, we're here Get advice online

Get advice by phone

Call freephone 0808 278 7995
Lines are open 9am to 4pm Monday to Friday
Or email us

More from us

Campaigns

We use our clients' experience to campaign for positive change, locally and nationally. See our latest campaigns, read our research and find out about the impact of our advice.

Campaigns

Opening times and where to find us

Latest update on face to face services

Chippenham

Devizes

Salisbury

Trowbridge

Subscribe to our newsletter

For our latest news, events and services sign up to our email newsletter.

Volunteer with us

Our highly trained volunteers come from a range of backgrounds and help with everything we do. 

Could you join them? 

Volunteer opportunities

Have we helped?

When we promote our work to the people who need us and the people who fund us, we rely on being able to tell real-life success stories about the difference we’ve made to people’s lives.

Your stories

Contact us
Please use this form to contact us, or to get advice by email.

We aim to respond to your enquiry within 5 working days, however during busy times it may take a little longer. If you don’t get a reply in your inbox, please check your spam or junk folder.

To contact us for advice by phone, call: 0808 278 7995
(Monday to Friday 9am to 4pm. Closed on public holidays).

Or for more ways to get advice click here.

Fields marked with ( * ) are required.
1000 characters left
Your personal information

When you provide us with personal information, for example, when using this form to contact us, we take steps to ensure that your information is treated securely.

We need to record information about you to help with your enquiry. We have a legitimate interest to do this.

We keep what you tell us safe and confidential and you always decide what you share with us. You can read more about how we handle and store your data in our privacy policy (this will open in a new window, so that any information you have already added to this form will be kept in this window)

We need your explicit consent to keep some information, including your ethnicity, religion, health conditions, sexual orientation, and trade union membership.

If you agree, we’ll use this information, which is known as ‘special category personal data’ to:
● give you advice
● help us gather data to improve our service
● support our research in a way that you can’t be identified

For example, if you need advice about claiming certain benefits, you may want to tell us about health problems you have which may be relevant to your enquiry.

By ticking the boxes below you consent to Citizens Advice recording the special category personal data you choose to provide Citizens Advice.

We’ll make sure all your information is kept safe and secure.

Yes, I consent to you holding information on my (please tick all of those you agree to):
Can we contact you for feedback?

We want to make sure our service meets your needs. To help us understand how we’re doing and to improve our service, we may want to contact you at a later date to ask for your feedback. Sometimes we need a trusted research organisation to help us do that.

We’ll decide who we contact for feedback based on the services you used and the advice area. We may also use your special category data so that we hear from different groups.

If you agree to us getting in touch for feedback please let us know how you’d prefer to be contacted by ticking the boxes below.

I agree to Citizens Advice selecting me for feedback using my information and I give permission to be contacted for feedback by (please tick all that apply):