COVID19 - Can employees be forced to go back to the office?
Most of the Covid restrictions have now been lifted. And with that, many employers have started to request that employees return back to the workplace. Whilst this was welcomed by many employees, there are some who may not yet feel comfortable to return back to the office. What is the position at law? Well, there is no legal provision which expressly regulates such matters in Malta. Would an employee who is recalled to the office be able to resign and claim that he was constructively dismissed since this was done against his will? This is quite a sensitive and unprecedented area. Whilst we are not aware that this matter has yet been considered by the Industrial Tribunal, we believe that it is a question of time since we are regularly asked about such matters. In weighing up the circumstances of each case, the following are all likely to be relevant:- Remote work and recall rights may be expressly regulated in employment contracts, although it is likely that those employment contracts that pre-dated Covid are silent on such issues.
- Employers have a general duty of care to ensure the employees’ health and safety at all times. This requires taking all reasonable steps to comply with all safety measures and to prove that any risks identified have been adequately mitigated.
- Assessing whether the employee has any medical reason for not returning to work.
For further information on Covid related matters, please get in touch with us.