Lockdown – are employers obliged to pay their staff?
The latest speech from Boris Johnson indicated that there are no immediate plans for a government-enforced lockdown, but like all new developments in recent weeks, this could well change quickly.
If a lockdown does occur, then Kemp Little’s view is as follows:
- Experience from other countries (other than China) would suggest that staff needing to leave the house to go to work would still be able to do so, unless there is a subsequent “total lockdown”;
- The position in relation to pay will depend on the circumstances of the lockdown:
- If staff are prevented from coming to work, then the historical position is that their employer does not have to pay them.
However, the Government is likely to try and protect workers which means that:
- It may order that employers don’t require staff to come to work, it which case it is likely that staff will still be entitled to remuneration; or
- The Government may simply require employers to continue to pay staff, even if they are not able to come back to work.
It is expected that the Chancellor will later today announce a package of measures in order to try and ensure that staff remain employed and continue to receive salary. Kemp Little will be reviewing this and will update on the measures announced.
Find all our Covid-19 related advice here.
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Lucy Sorell is an employment senior associate
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