MAKE YOUR FREE Temporary Working From Home Policy
What we'll cover
What is a Temporary Working From Home Policy?
Employers can use a Temporary Working From Home Policy to inform their employees about their approach to temporary home working in response to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Temporary Working From Home Policies communicate employee expectations and employer responsibilities (eg for employees’ health and safety) relevant to homeworkers.
When should I use a Temporary Working From Home Policy?
Use this Temporary Working From Home Policy:
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if your business has employees
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when your employees have been asked to temporarily work from home due to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic
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for workplaces based in England and Wales only
Sample Temporary Working From Home Policy
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TEMPORARY WORKING FROM HOME POLICY
IN RESPONSE TO CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19)
Statement and Purpose of Policy
- For some businesses, temporarily asking employees to work from home due to Coronavirus (COVID-19) is still an appropriate health and safety measure. We therefore ask that you work from home unless or until we notify you otherwise.
- The purpose of this document is to set out our approach to home working during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.
- We may amend this Policy at any time, at our absolute discretion.
Who Does This Policy Cover?
- This Policy and the rules contained within it apply to all employees, irrespective of seniority, tenure and working hours, including all directors and officers, casual or agency staff, trainees and fixed-term staff and volunteers.
Hours of Work
- Please make sure that you take adequate rest breaks throughout the day, as set out in your employment contract.
- In the event that you are having to deal with the potentially conflicting demands of work and looking after children or other dependents, please discuss any changes you need to your working schedule with your line manager.
Communicating With Your Line Manager
- Make sure you keep in regular contact with your line manager and notify them if you are unsure about what you are required to do.
- You should consider all lines of communication, including email, telephone and video calls to ensure relationships are maintained and work continues.
- If at any point you feel isolated or lacking guidance or support, discuss this with your line manager or a member of the HR team.
Equipment and Materials
- If you need any equipment and materials, you should notify your line manager immediately. We will do our best to ensure that you have all the equipment and materials you need to enable you to work effectively, although bear in mind that it may not be possible to provide all equipment immediately or at all. We ask that you do your best with what you have.
- Where equipment or materials are provided, it will remain our property.
- In relation to the equipment or materials provided to you by us, you must:
- use it for work-related purposes only. Equipment and materials we provide you must not be used by any other member of the family or third party at any time or for any purpose.
- take reasonable care of it.
- notify the IT department or your line manager of any faults with the equipment or materials.
- make it available to us for collection at any time if requested to do so.
- You shall be responsible for any damage to the equipment or materials which goes beyond ordinary wear and tear.
- Where you are using your own equipment and materials, please notify your line manager.
Expenses
- You will be responsible for any other associated costs of you working from home, including the costs of heating, lighting, electricity and printing.
Tax
- You may be able to claim tax relief for any household expenses incurred as a result of working from home, provided the expenses are solely work related. If you wish to benefit from this tax relief, see the Government's guide on claiming tax relief for your job expenses at www.gov.uk/tax-relief-for-employees/working-at-home.
Security
- You are responsible for ensuring the security of all equipment, documents and information and must take all necessary steps to ensure that confidential information is kept secure at all times. In particular, you must:
- password protect any confidential information held on your home computer;
- lock your computer whenever it is left unattended;
- store confidential papers securely when they are not in use;
- ensure the secure disposal of any confidential papers (e.g. by using a shredder if there is one available);
- report any data security breaches to your line manager immediately.
Health and Safety
- You should follow all health and safety instructions issued by us from time to time.
- Liaise with your line manager to make sure that your workstation is appropriate and that you are working in a safe manner.
- You must take reasonable care of your own health and safety and that of anyone else in the home who is affected by your work while working from home.
- Notify your line manager and the HR department if you feel any discomfort due to working from home (such as back pain), or if you feel that there are any work-related health and safety hazards.
- There are steps you can take to make sure you achieve a comfortable posture while working from home on display screen equipment (DSE). Please watch the video from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) on workstation set-up at www.hse.gov.uk/toolbox/workers/home.htm.
- While working with DSE, please also observe these guidelines:
- Break up long spells of DSE work with rest breaks (at least five minutes every hour) or changes in activity.
- Avoid awkward, static postures by regularly changing your position.
- Get up and move around or do stretching exercises.
- Avoid eye fatigue by changing focus or blinking from time to time.
- Employees should follow the usual reporting procedures for any work-related accidents that occur in their home.
Sickness
- If you are sick and unable to work, you must contact your line manager as soon as possible and report your sickness using our standard sickness reporting procedure. If you have Coronavirus (COVID-19) symptoms, which include a fever and/or a continuous cough, you should consider the Government's advice for people with symptoms of respiratory infections including Coronavirus (COVID-19) (www.gov.uk/guidance/people-with-symptoms-of-a-respiratory-infection-including-covid-19).
Holiday
- We encourage employees to take annual leave. Employees can request annual leave in the usual way, as set out in your employment contract. If you have previously booked annual leave during this period of temporary working from home, you will not be allowed to cancel it unless this has been approved by your line manager or a member of HR.
- If it is not possible for you to use your annual leave allowance for the current leave year due to Coronavirus (COVID-19), you will be entitled to carry over up to 4 weeks' paid annual leave over the next 2 holiday leave years. To carry over holiday under this Policy, you must have been affected by Coronavirus (COVID-19) to the extent that it was not possible for you to take your annual leave during the current leave year, eg because you were self-isolating, too sick to take holiday, furloughed or are a key worker, as defined by the Government guidance (www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-maintaining-educational-provision/guidance-for-schools-colleges-and-local-authorities-on-maintaining-educational-provision).
- Please speak to your line manager or a member of the HR team should you wish to discuss in detail your holiday arrangements.
Insurance
- You should check with your home and contents insurance providers that they have adequate cover for the fact that you work from home and whether any of your own equipment is covered for work use.
Termination of Home Working
- We will notify you when we decide to bring the home working arrangement to an end.
- The current home working arrangements are exceptional and this arrangement does not guarantee a right to work from home indefinitely.
About Temporary Working From Home Policies
Learn more about making your Temporary Working From Home Policy
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How to make a Temporary Working From Home Policy
Making your Temporary Working From Home Policy online is simple. Just answer a few questions and Rocket Lawyer will build your document for you. When you have all of the information prepared in advance, creating your document is a quick and easy process.
You’ll need the following information:
Working hours and holidays
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Are employees required to work their usual hours when working from home?
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If not, during which core hours should employees be working? For example, 11:00am to 2:00pm.
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Will the employer be able to tell employees to take specific days off as annual leave if, for example, the employer decides to close the business for a period of time?
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Will the employer be able to cancel any annual leave that employees have booked during this time?
Other employment policies
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Does the employer currently have a Health and safety policy, Communications and equipment policy, Data protection policy, and/or a Sickness policy in place?
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If employees are required to work regular hours when working from home, is there a Flexible working policy in place that employees can use when requesting flexible working arrangements?
Insurance and expenses
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Will the employer cover any additional telephone and broadband expenses that employees incur due to their working from home?
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Will the employer cover any other work-related expenses that employees incur due to their working from home?
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If so, up to what limit?
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Will the employer cover any additional insurance premiums required by employees’ insurance cover (eg home and contents insurance) due to their working from home?
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Common terms in a Temporary Working From Home Policy
Temporary Working From Home Policies communicate information about guidelines and employer and employee responsibilities for temporary working from home arrangements. To do this, this Temporary Working From Home Policy template includes the following terms and sections:
Statement of purpose and policy
The Policy starts by clearly identifying the Policy’s purpose: communicating guidelines and information about working from home on a temporary basis as requested by the employer in reaction to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
The employer’s right to change this Policy at any time is also set out (ie the Policy does not form part of any employee’s Employment contract).
Who does this Policy cover?
Here it’s noted that the Policy applies to all of the employer’s employees (ie those with employee status). This may include, for example, trainees, volunteers, casual staff and others.
Hours of work
This section sets out whether employees’ regular hours or work will apply when they’re working from home or whether they will not (ie so only specified core hours must be worked and employees can choose when they work the remainder of their hours). If employees are required to work regular hours, they will be informed that they can make Flexible working requests if they want to request other arrangements.
This section also reminds employees to take rest breaks when working from home and to contact their line managers to discuss any difficulties with working hours (eg fitting them around childcare commitments).
Communicating with your line manager
Next, the Policy asks that employees and line managers keep in regular contact in various ways (eg via calls and emails) and that any concerns about what to do when working from home or about feeling isolated or unsupported are communicated.
Equipment and materials
This section asks employees to tell their line managers if they are using any of their own equipment or materials and whether they need any additional equipment or materials in order to work from home. It notes that the employer will do their best to facilitate such requests, but does not oblige the employer to provide anything.
Guidelines for handling any equipment that is provided are also set out. For example, this equipment will remain the employer’s property and should be taken care of and only used for work-related purposes. If equipment is damaged beyond ordinary wear and tear, employees will be responsible for this damage.
Expenses
Here the Policy sets out whether the employer covers any additional expenses incurred due to employees working from home or not. If the employer is covering expenses beyond reasonable telephone and internet charges, a limit on these additional expenses will be specified here.
You can use an expense-policy to set out which expenses employees may and may not claim in more detail.
Tax
This section informs employees that they may be able to claim tax relief on their household expenses when these are incurred due to working from home. It provides a link to the Government’s guidance on this tax relief.
Security
This section outlines employees’ responsibilities for ensuring that information and equipment that they work with are kept secure while they’re working from home. This is done in part by reference to employment policies that the employer may have in place (eg a Data protection and data security policy).
Health and safety
Employees’ responsibilities to uphold their and others’ health and safety at work is set out here, including the requirement that employees follow health and safety instructions and, if one is in place, the employer’s Health and safety policy. Specific requirements relevant to home working are set out, for example, ensuring home workstations are safe and appropriate.
Sickness
Here employees are asked to follow the employer’s sickness-policy if they’re sick and unable to work. Employees are also asked to consider the Government’s guidance for people with symptoms of respiratory infections including Coronavirus (COVID-19).
Holiday
This section explains that employees should continue to book and use their annual leave entitlements as usual when working from home. If the employer is allowed to require employees to take annual leave at certain times or to require them to cancel leave that they’ve booked during the temporary working from home period, this is set out here alongside the applicable notice periods for such instructions.
Employees’ right to carry over up to 4 weeks of their annual leave entitlement when it’s unable to be used due to Coronavirus (COVID-19) is also set out here.
Insurance
Here employees are asked to check that their home and contents insurance cover is adequate considering that they are working from home. If the employer is covering any additional premiums required, this is set out here.
Termination of home working
Lastly, the Policy explains that the working from home arrangements in place are temporary and that the employer will communicate when they are to end.
If you want your Temporary Working From Home Policy to include further or more detailed provisions, you can edit your document. However, if you do this, you may want a lawyer to review the document for you (or to make the changes for you) to make sure that your modified Policy complies with all relevant laws. Use Rocket Lawyer’s Ask a lawyer service for assistance.
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Legal tips for employers
Always comply with health and safety laws
This Temporary Working From Home Policy sets out some basic provisions on health and safety for employees working from home. Health and safety is an important area of law and compliance with it is essential for helping employers to be conscientious. Compliance also reduces the risk of legal cases being brought against the employer for breaches of their health and safety duties. To help you meet your obligations as an employer, make sure that you’re fully aware of your health and safety obligations. Start by:
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reading our guidance on Health and safety
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creating and following a clear Health and safety policy
To make sure that you care for the health and safety of employees working from home, consider:
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reading our guidance on Health and safety responsibilities for staff working from home
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creating a Lone working policy, to set out how you handle the health and safety of employees working alone, including home workers
You should also be sure to regularly carry out risk assessments.
Also ensure that employees are safe when they return to your workplace by considering any risks the return will carry. A Return to work risk assessment can help you to do this.
Consider making long-term provisions for home working
Allowing working from home on a regular basis can be a useful strategy for employers. It can help employees to obtain a better work-life balance, increasing their happiness and productivity, and can make any jobs you’re advertising more appealing to a wider range of prospective candidates. To set out your long-term provisions for home working, you could make a Working from home policy.
Understand when to seek advice from a lawyer
In some circumstances, it’s good practice to Ask a lawyer for advice to ensure that you’re complying with the law and that you are well protected from risks. You should consider asking for advice if:
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this Policy doesn't meet your needs or doesn’t cover what you want
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your employees don't agree with the Temporary Working From Home Policy
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you’re not sure if working from home due to Coronavirus (COVID-19) is still appropriate for your workplace
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Temporary Working From Home Policy FAQs
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What should a Temporary Working From Home Policy Include?
This Temporary Working From Home Policy template covers:
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employees’ hours of work when working from home
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equipment and materials
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security
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tax
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termination of home working arrangements
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Why do I need a Temporary Working From Home Policy?
If your employees are going to be working from home on a temporary basis, it’s important that your expectations and guidelines for employees during this time are clearly set out. You can use a Temporary Working From Home Policy to do this.
Moreover, employers have the same health and safety responsibilities for home workers as any for those working on the business’ premises. This applies regardless of whether employees are home working on a temporary or a long-term basis. Creating a Temporary Working From Home Policy helps you to set out how you will uphold these responsibilities. For more information, read Health and safety for employees working from home during Coronavirus (COVID-19).
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What are employers’ health and safety obligations?
The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 requires employers to take all reasonably practicable steps to ensure the health, safety and welfare at work of all of their employees, including employees who work from home.
This duty covers various aspects of a workplace, including providing a safe place of work and safe equipment and work systems. Employers should consider specific risks that home workers face when they conduct risk assessments (ie evaluations of risks workers face during work and of how they are and can be managed). For more information, read Health and safety, Health and safety for employees working from home during Coronavirus (COVID-19), and Employer first aid obligations for employees working from home and lone workers.
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What do an employer’s health and safety obligations include?
Employers should be aware of their specific obligations under health and safety law. Some of the most important of these obligations are:
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encouraging employees to liaise with their line managers to ensure their workstations are appropriate and that employees are working in a safe manner
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reminding employees to take responsibility for their own health and safety and that of anyone else in their homes who is affected by their work
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requiring employees to notify their line managers if they feel any discomfort due to working from home (eg back pain) or if they feel that there are any work-related health and safety hazards. Line managers should then be instructed to escalate any matters to Human Resources (or similar) and to look into what action can be taken
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informing employees that there are steps they can take to achieve a comfortable posture while working from home on display screen equipment (DSE).
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providing guidelines about safe working practices to help prevent accidents and injuries, including musculoskeletal injuries
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reminding employees to follow the usual reporting procedures. For example, for any work-related accidents that occur in their homes or for reporting sickness
For more information, read Health and safety and Health and safety for employees working from home during Coronavirus (COVID-19).
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Do employers need to provide employees with equipment when they’re working from home?
It may not be possible to provide everyone with the ideal equipment for working from home and employers are not obliged to do this. However, employers should provide equipment where this is needed for employees with a disability. You should take each request on a case-by-case basis.
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