Unions and medical professionals have called for more clarity as the government plans to announce that requirements such as mask-wearing and social distancing will be removed from 19 July.
So-called “freedom day” was initially postponed for four weeks from 21 June but is now likely to go ahead, despite a rise in coronavirus infections in the UK.
The Prime Minister is expected to confirm today that remaining restrictions, including the rule of six for gatherings, capacity limits in cinemas and the advice to work from home where possible will be removed.
Workplace management
Coronavirus employment tribunal round-up: Employees raising health and safety concerns
He is expected to say that people must “learn to live with the virus” and “exercise judgment” regarding whether they wish to wear masks.
But Paul Nowak, deputy general secretary of the TUC told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme that members were uncomfortable with the emphasis on personal responsibility rather than clear guidance.
“There are potentially millions returning to the workplace who have not been to work for a year or more,” he said. “They want confidence that it is as Covid secure and safe as possible. I just don’t think it’s acceptable to simply outsource responsibility to individuals and individual employers – the government cannot wash its hands of the issues.”
Nowak said the government needed to clarify as soon as possible whether the advice to “work from home where possible” would change, so employers would have time to prepare and carry out risk assessments.
He added that asking people to make a personal choice about behaviours such as mask wearing and ventilation could become problematic.
“Sometimes personal choices can rub up against each other – some people might feel comfortable wearing a face-covering, but others won’t. The government should engage with unions and employers as to what we can do to make return to work as safe and as secure as possible.”
A spokesperson from Unite said it would be “gross negligence” to drop the wearing of masks on public transport, citing a high number of Covid deaths among bus drivers even when face coverings were compulsory.
“The idea of personal responsibility and hoping that people will wear masks is absolutely ridiculous, members are already reporting there is an increase in passengers ignoring the rules on mask wearing,” said national officer for passenger transport, Bobby Morton.
A number of medical professionals have also criticised the move. Dr Chaand Nagpaul, chair of the British Medical Association, said it “makes no sense” to stop wearing face coverings in enclosed public spaces as cases of the Delta variant increase.
Johnson is also expected to confirm later today the findings of reviews into the use of vaccine passports and social distancing measures. The final decision on whether to move to ‘step four’ of the restriction-easing roadmap in England will only be made on 12 July.
The TUC published a survey of employers earlier this year that found almost half (46%) felt their employer had not taken technical measures to improve ventilation at work, while one in 10 said social distancing was not in place.
Three in 10 said they had not been consulted by their employer on a Covid-secure risk-assessment, the TUC found.
Stephen Ravenscroft, head of employment at law firm Memery Crystal, said that employers would have to weigh up the impact of any decisions they made around mask wearing or social distancing.
He said: “Any removal of the requirement to wear face masks by the government will place employers in the position of making their own rules around the wearing of masks.
“Like any dress code which may be advisable from a health and safety perspective, employers will need to weigh up carefully the impact of such rules on individual employees against the justification for those rules. There may be risks of indirect discrimination if a blanket policy is introduced with no exceptions.
“On the other hand, employers who relax the requirement for face masks in the workplace may have to address concerns raised by employees who feel uneasy about attending a workplace where masks are not mandatory for their colleagues or their customers. This will be yet another challenging issue to manage as part of a return to the workplace or office.”
Kate Palmer, HR advice and consultancy director at Peninsula, added that employers should “wait to hear” for the formal announcements as to whether any rules will remain in place, as this will dictate policy.
“A face mask policy should set out the company’s rules on when and where face masks should be worn in the workplace as well as supporting this by making employees aware of any possibility of disciplinary action if rules are broken,” she advised.
Managers would need to be respectful of employees’ personal choices and remind others of this, she added.
“Employees who are wearing face masks in the workplace will be used to the company rules by now so an employer who wishes for employees to continue to wear face masks shouldn’t face much resistance. It’s also likely that many employees may still make a personal choice to wear one even if not required by their employer,” she told Personnel Today.
“Employers should speak to employees who resist being required to wear a mask to find out what their reasons are. Employees should also be reminded of the need to be respectful of employees’ individual opinions and empower staff to be able to comfortably let someone know that they would still like some distance between them and their colleagues.”
Dan Shears, health and safety director at the GMB union, said: “If compulsory masks are going to go then it is up to employers to control the Covid infection risk, primarily through ventilation, to keep workers and the general public safe.”
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