UK Riots: I wonder what employers can do to support their workforce?

Last month, far-right protests and riots following the horrific attack on a girls’ dance class made headlines in the UK. The far-right protests and riots caused damage and fear in cities across the UK, with many employers closing workplaces early in affected areas. This article reflects on the protests and the duties employers have towards employees in such situations.

Health and safety

Under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, employers have a duty to provide a safe place of work. If your business is located in close proximity to a planned protest, this may mean that you need to close the business early to make sure employees are not put at risk. You may also consider allowing employees to work from home, where feasible, or varying start and finish times. If employees must attend the workplace, you may consider arranging safe rides home and should ensure that no one is left working alone. 

If I close the workplace, do I need to pay employees?

Where you have taken the decision to close the workplace, you will normally still need to pay employees their normal pay if they are ready and willing to work. You may be able to lay-off employees or use short-time working if the employees’ contract of employment allows this. Otherwise, you could ask employees to use annual leave or take unpaid leave, but employees would have to agree to this.

Supporting affected employees

Some employees may be affected by the protests more than others due to factors such as their ethnicity, religion or perceived ethnicity and religion. Make sure that these employees know you support them. If employees feel unsafe coming into work on a day of a planned protest, listen to their concerns and consider what steps you can take to ensure they are safe at work. In addition to physical safety, the riots and protests will affect some employees’ mental health as well. If you offer any mental health support, you should remind employees of these services.  

Finally, it is good practice to regularly remind all employees of your policies regarding discrimination and harassment and how violations of these policies can be reported. Make sure managers are trained on how to properly manage a complaint of discrimination or harassment.

What if my employees are involved in the riots?

If you have been informed that an employee attended a protest, you should avoid knee-jerk reactions. Employees have the right to express their views and to protest peacefully. However, they do not have the right to commit vandalism, assault, or discriminatory behaviour.

You may take disciplinary action against the employee if their conduct affects the business or the employee’s ability to do their role. For example, their conduct may bring the business into disrepute, or violate your employee code of conduct. If the employee has more than two years’ service you will need to follow a fair process, starting with an investigation. Speak to the employee and any relevant witnesses to establish the facts. If there is a case to answer you should proceed with a disciplinary hearing in accordance with your disciplinary procedure. The employee should be given the opportunity to answer any allegations and offer an explanation. If after following a fair process the employee is found to have committed misconduct, consider what sanction would be appropriate.

If one of your employees has been arrested and charged with a crime related to the riots, you should still exercise caution, and not treat this as an automatic justification for dismissal. The charges may be dropped or the person may be found not guilty. However, you do not need to wait for the outcome of the criminal case before proceeding with your own internal investigation and disciplinary procedure. Criminal proceedings can take a long time to conclude, so waiting until they are finished may prejudice your own internal investigation.

You should also keep in mind that when carrying out a disciplinary procedure you do not need to establish the employee’s guilt to the criminal standard of beyond reasonable doubt. You would however need to show that any sanction you impose was within the band of reasonable responses open to a reasonable employer.

If now seems like a good time to review your disciplinary procedures or your equality and diversity policies, get in touch. Our Document Audit team would be happy to help. You can contact us by emailing employment@warnergoodman.co.uk or calling 023 8071 7717.