Business guidance for July 19 reopening  

Please note: this article was published on 15th July 2021, the information below may now be out of date. For the latest information, visit our Covid-19 Updates page here.

The UK government has published the newly updated working safely guidance to support businesses in England through Step 4 of the roadmap, starting on Monday 19th July 2021.

From Step 4, legal restrictions are lifted, all businesses can open and the government is no longer instructing people to work from home.

Businesses still have a legal duty to manage health and safety risks. You must carry out a health and safety risk assessment, including the risk of Coronavirus, and take reasonable steps to mitigate the risks you identify.

This guidance should be used by businesses to carry out the risk assessment, and inform planning and business operations from 19 July. As before, the updated guides cover a range of different types of work and are available here.

On  working from  home, Essex said:

“With so many businesses already experiencing staff shortages,  due to employees contracting COVID or being forced to self-isolate, many will likely take a cautious approach even  with the government giving the green light for the  return to the office.

“Our research shows many businesses are planning to keep at least some staff working remotely for at least the next year.  But the capability to do this varies  greatly  across business types so it won’t be an option for everyone.”

On  changes to the self-isolation  rules, Essex said: 

“We are already seeing issues for businesses related to staff having to self-isolate with COVID, or as a close contact of someone who has tested positive, and some  of our members are struggling to stay open as a result.

“Instances of self-isolation will almost certainly continue to rise between now and the change set for August 16, so firms need to know if there are any plans to help them  cope in the intervening period, including any plans to roll out a ‘test and release’ process – allowing people to return to work more swiftly.”

On  vaccine certification, Essex added:  

“BCC  research shows  most firms previously had no plans to use vaccine certificates. Where they are being asked to use  such a scheme  then Government must  set out the full  rationale  for  the system, how this relates to  employment law and anti-discrimination law and what the consequences will be for businesses who choose not to take this approach.”

On  contingency  plans for the future, Essex said:

“Our  research shows that  almost two  in five businesses cite concerns about  possible future  lockdowns as a  barrier to  restarting or returning to pre-pandemic levels. This rises to 50% for business-to-consumer facing firms such as hospitality and retail.

“To give firms the confidence to fully reopen the Government  must  set out contingency plans for  any  future virus response, the  circumstances under which they  would  be used,  and the support it would  provide  businesses  impacted.”