The government must do more to protect key workers threatened with dismissal or put on unpaid leave if they’re off work self-isolating because of vulnerable relatives, says UNISON today (Wednesday).
Anxious staff have come to UNISON with heartbreaking stories, terrified that if forced to go into work, they might take the virus home – with potentially devastating consequences.
Local government and NHS employers have put agreements in place to protect the income of any staff off work because of the health of family members. But some employers – including councils and schools – are instead using Public Health England (PHE) guidance to compel frightened staff to go into work, says UNISON.
The PHE guidance states that staff with shielding or clinically vulnerable family members can still go to work, so long as they observe social distancing both at their workplace and home.
But many workers have jobs where social distancing isn’t possible – such as in schools or care homes – or live in houses or flats that are simply too small to make this a practical option, says UNISON.
As a result, workers who have, for example, partners with cancer or severe asthma, children with cystic fibrosis or frail and elderly parents, are faced with the unenviable choice of being forced to work or left with no income.
In a letter to health secretary Matt Hancock, UNISON general secretary Dave Prentis has asked the government to extend the furlough scheme beyond private companies.
This would allow staff working for employers that receive public money to help provide services – for example, charities, businesses providing contract cleaning or catering services for hospitals and schools, or nurseries receiving state support to provide free childcare – to qualify for government assistance if they self-isolate.
The letter also asks that employees off work because they’re protecting vulnerable loved ones be treated the same as those in self-isolation and therefore eligible for statutory or occupational sick pay and leave.
Commenting on the letter, UNISON general secretary Dave Prentis said: “Key workers are being forced to choose between protecting vulnerable loved ones or losing pay.
“Employers putting their staff under pressure need to stop hiding behind public health guidance and use more common sense. Leaving staff with no income when there are other options to pursue is simply wrong.
“UNISON has put forward simple solutions that we hope ministers will take on board before more livelihoods and, potentially, lives are lost.”
Some of the stories reported to UNISON include:
· A care worker self-isolating to protect his pregnant nurse wife said: “I need to work but need to protect my family first. I have a wife, a six-year-old and a new baby on the way. We live together in a one-bedroom flat. My managers say I don’t qualify for the furlough scheme and as a migrant worker I don’t qualify for help from the state, so I have no income. We don’t even qualify for food parcels for my young son. It’s a challenging time, but we’re committed to supporting the NHS, so I’ll find a way to survive until we can work again.”
· A mortuary worker said: “I’m used to dealing with infectious diseases and take precautions in the mortuary. The problem is the other people who come into my workplace. I’m fine working with Covid-19 patients who’ve sadly passed, it’s the living I’m worried about. I’ve a wife and child who are both shielding due to lung conditions and they’re terrified I’ll infect them. It’s a real worry for us. Managers have offered to redeploy me, but the nature of the work means maintaining social distancing isn’t always possible. I’m not trying to get something for nothing, I’ll gladly take reduced pay. I just want to protect my family.”
· A school caretaker whose wife and young child are both shielding on government advice and who hasn’t been paid for over a month said: “We feel like we’re forgotten. I can’t see any light at the end of the tunnel. I told my manager I’d start early or work at the end of the day to limit my exposure to the threat of the virus, because there’s little chance of social distancing in a primary school – you can’t stop kids sneezing and coughing – but they said no. If my wife wasn’t disabled, I’d move out to protect the family, but that’s not an option because my daughter’s also unwell. I’ve told my two older boys, who’ve been furloughed from their jobs, that if they go back to work they’ll have to move out to protect their mum and sister. We have no income and we’re getting into debt. It’s hard to know what else we can cut back on. I’m low paid anyway, so not having any money coming in is causing massive amounts of stress and anxiety.”