Fresh UK Clampdowns Underscore Working From Home Risks

Tom Burroughes

19 October 2020

UK authorities imposed tougher restrictions to fight the pandemic in London from midnight on Friday last week, reports said. This underscores how working from home is the norm for millions of citizens. And it is fraught with challenges for employers and staff alike.

Employers of all sizes must understand the challenges arising from home working, Ami Amin, regulatory lawyer, Constantine Law and Ben Payne, employment lawyers, , caught headlines with their positions. Schroders, a FTSE-100 company with more than 5,000 staff, said that employees will no longer have to come to the office. PwC is letting the majority of its staff work from home.

In the wealth management sector, this news service regularly talks to C-suite executives, managers and other figures from their homes, usually via Zoom, Microsoft Teams or other channels. In-person meetings are rare: this correspondent has had a total of five in-person meetings for work since the March restrictions began. Already, journalists have become used to remote working, using digital workflow tools such as Slack and Basecamp to keep abreast of tasks.

For millions in sectors such as hospitality, construction, agriculture, heavy engineering and transport, lockdowns/social distancing have forced firms to shut operations completely, such as cinemas, or forced people to wear protective gear in the workplace, and change how they work. And a large number of people have been placed on temporary furlough.

This news service will be talking to firms and individuals about home-working challenges, and for anyone who wants to share their experiences, please email tom.burroughes@wealthbriefing.com and jackie.bennion@clearviewpublishing.com