Coronavirus (COVID-19) Workplace Policy

This document is a workplace policy document which outlines the measures that a business shall take to manage the risk of coronavirus (COVID-19) and other respiratory infections. The document may be used by businesses in the United Kingdom (England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland).

In early 2022, the government removed the remaining restrictions in respect of self-isolation and mandatory testing. Although it is no longer an explicit legal requirement to undertake a COVID-19 workplace risk assessment, it is still important for a business to consider its health and safety duties as an employer. Amongst other things, an employer has a duty to ensure that people are not exposed to risks to their health and safety and still must conduct a general risk assessment in respect of health and safety risks.

Whilst it is not a legal requirement to hold a workplace policy which specifically addresses COVID-19 and other respiratory infections, it can still be a useful tool for employers and staff members. Acas (Great Britain) advises that it is good practice to have a policy to address issues relating to absences, self-isolation and sick pay. Furthermore, where a business wishes to implement any workplace COVID-19 testing schemes or any schemes regarding the vaccination status of its staff members, a policy should be held in order to:

• address the particular requirements of the schemes
• set out the justification of the schemes (taking into account any obligations held under the Equality Act 2010 or the relevant equality laws in Northern Ireland)
• address how the schemes meet data protection law requirements

This document can be used in conjunction with any of the following policies, documents and agreements which may be held by a business:

• a health and safety policy (mandatory); and/or
• a remote work policy; and/or
• a sickness policy; and/or
• a privacy policy (which will be of particular importance where health data is to be processed); and/or
• a grievance and disciplinary procedure; and/or
• a formal contractual remote work agreement; and/or
• a formal contract of employment or worker agreement.

How to use this document

The document should be completed by accurately confirming all the relevant details. Where an employer formally recognises a trade union, the contents of the policy should be discussed and agreed upon with any such trade union. Alternatively, where no trade union is recognised, the workforce should be consulted in respect of the contents of the policy. It is not a requirement for the policy document to be signed by a representative of the business. A business may however include the signature of a representative (manager or director etc) in order to illustrate its comment to the policy. This will be a matter of choice for the business.

Once created, the policy should be made easily available and communicated to the staff members of the business to whom the policy applies. Many businesses choose to keep this type of policy in a staff handbook or on an online intranet portal.

Relevant law

There is a lot of helpful online information about managing the risks of COVID-19 and other respiratory infections, such as:

• The UK government website
• The Health and Safety Executive website (Great Britain)
• The Health and Safety Executive for Northern Ireland website
• The ACAS website (Great Britain)
• The Labour Relations Agency website (Northern Ireland)

Some of the key pieces of law which are relevant to this policy are:

• The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 (Great Britain)
• The Health and Safety at Work (Northern Ireland) Order 1978 (Northern Ireland)
• The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 (Great Britain)
• The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations (NI) 2000 (Northern Ireland)
• The Data Protection Act 2018 (UK)
• The retained EU General Data Protection Regulation 2016/679 (UK GDPR) (UK)

Help from a lawyer

You can choose to consult a lawyer if you need help.

The lawyer can answer your questions or help you through the process. You will be offered this option when you complete the document.

How to modify the template

You fill out a form. The document is created before your eyes as you respond to the questions.

At the end, you receive it in Word and PDF formats. You can modify it and reuse it.