Can I work from home? What employers need to consider before answering this question

Over the past year many organisations have probably considered the implications of allowing employees to work from home more seriously than in previous years. With instances such as the massive snow fall earlier this year and the swine flu outbreak which continues to affect numerous workplaces, many employers will undoubtedly have been frustrated by drops in productivity whilst employees may have been confused by unclear guidance on how to cope with such setbacks.

Home working of course comes in many forms – ranging from an hour here or there to the odd day on an ad hoc basis to organised days to full time home working.

It is important to remember that if someone is working form home this becomes a place of work and it needs to be risk assessed. In addition there are practical issues such as equipment, confidentiality/ data protection, changes to employment contract, communication and reporting and possibly tax to consider.
In addition there are some instances where an employee has the right to work to request to work form home as a flexible working request or where working form home could be part of a reasonable adjustment in response to the needs of a disabled employee.

It therefore makes sense to have a home working policy that covers both contingency and organised working form home. This will help workplaces to manage and make decisions concerning home working from all points of view.

And if an employee asks you if they can work from home?

Employees are not automatically entitled to work from home, however refusal of a request to do so could have discrimination implications, such as in the case of a disabled employee where allowing this employee to work from home could be seen as a reasonable adjustment by the employer (and therefore the refusal could constitute a breach of the Disability Discrimination Act requiring them to make reasonable adjustments!) To avoid the risk of discrimination the employer should be able to justify their refusal. They may choose to allow trial periods so that a subsequent refusal would be based on sound business reasons and the decision to do so would be more defendable. Once an employee has been granted the right to work from home it’s important for their employer to make sure they are not then facing discrimination, for example by having fewer employment benefits than their colleagues as they cannot take advantage of various benefits and facilities from home.

The bottom line? There are a wide range of issues that employers should consider if they enter into home working arrangements.

If you want advice and guidance on any aspects of home working please contact or would like to discuss implications with reference to your own organisation please contact your principal consultant at HR Advantage or call Christine on 01494 478801 or e-mail Christine@hradvantage.co.uk.

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Can I work from home? What employers need to consider before answering this question

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