End of Covid curbs ‘not a green light for cutting corners’, warn unions
The government’s plan to drop all Covid restrictions a month early has threatened to open a rift between unions and employers, with the TUC warning it could be a “green light for bosses to cut corners”.
The prime minister’s announcement that all domestic Covid-19 restrictions in England, including the requirement for people with the virus to self-isolate, will be dropped from 21 February, sparked jubilation from pub and nightclub owners that life will return to moribund city centres, but one business lobby group warned that “conflict and confusion” will follow unless there is clear guidance.
People with Covid will be expected to stay at home, as they would with flu, but without a legal requirement backed up by hefty fines. Rules are also being relaxed in Scotland and Wales, and Northern Ireland intends to ditch most remaining curbs this week.
The TUC urged employers to carry out proper risk assessments to keep staff safe at work, including checking whether they have adequate ventilation. It also called on the government to keep statutory sick pay a right from day one (rather than reverting to day four, as was the case before the pandemic), to ensure that all workers are covered by it, and to increase the level of sick pay. At the moment, about 2 million people, mostly women, do not earn enough to qualify.
The TUC’s general secretary, Frances O’Grady, said: “Today’s announcement is not a green light for bosses to cut corners.
“It’s also vital that ministers fix our broken sick pay system once and for all. Workers who are laid low by Covid must be able to make ends meet – not pushed into financial hardship. It beggars belief that millions still don’t have access to decent sick pay. This is leaving the country vulnerable to new
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