Covid HM Government Guidance

[Jonaun1]

I am currently working from home and have been since the country went into lockdown. I am not a business critical worker and can successfully work safely from home. Our employers are now instructing us that we should be returning to the office for 2 days per week from the end of this month and will give us no explanation as to why.

When we presented the case that the government are still saying if you can work from home then do so, they told us this was guidance only.

I am am classed as vulnerable with underlying health conditions and would obviously prefer tomwork from home where I am safe.

Can anyone offer advise on what, if anything I can do?

[ULA]

These are the current government guidelines "People who can work from home should continue to do so. Employers should decide, in consultation with their workers, whether it is viable for them to continue working from home. Where it is decided that workers should come into their place of work then this will need to be reflected in the risk assessment and actions taken to manage the risks of transmission in line with the government guidelines."

So in one respect your employer is correct they are guidelines not mandatory. However they do need to carry out a risk assessment for staff returning to work and that includes those employees considered to be vulnerable or high risk. If your employer does not already know that you are vulnerable with an underlying health issue, then my suggestion would be to have that conversation with them in the first instance and see what the outcome is.