Remote working has been around longer than you would think but really came to light at the outset of the pandemic. Now that we have the ability to work from home full or part-time and we have proven that it is a viable way of working, employees are asking for it much more often.
So as an employer, what do you need to do in regard to your employees who have decided to work remotely? It’s a very good question but one that nobody really knows the answer to yet.
There are no legal obligations when dealing with remote workers’ salaries and expenses. It is up to you and the needs of your individual business.
For example, say you have a large office building in London and one of your employees decides to work remotely full time. There is now no need for them to live in the Capital and therefore, they decide to move somewhere where the house prices are cheaper. Now that they aren’t living in London, there is no need for them to have an increased salary. Therefore, you may decide to negotiate with them to lower their salary now they are working remotely.
If we look at this from another perspective, say you ask your entire workforce who usually work in the large office in London to work permanently from home. There is no longer a need to be paying for the large office building and therefore you are able to increase your employees’ salaries.
The main thing to remember is that communication is key, before an employee makes a final decision regarding remote working, just make sure you have decided what will happen to their salary, that they understand your decision and that the same treatment is given to all staff.
Expenses for remote workers are similar to salary changes in the fact that they are decided by the employer and agreed by the employee.
Remote working expenses can include screens, keyboards, chairs, printers etc – things that employees need in order to carry out their job effectively. It is likely that following the multiple lockdowns and being forced into home working has meant that most employees will have the appropriate equipment to carry out the day to day of working from home. However, if an employee has a computer chair that is very old and causing severe pain to their back, then you would be required to provide an appropriate chair or cover the expense of this.
As well as equipment expenses, household bill expenses should also be considered for reimbursement. A study conducted in 2020 found that since working from home, the average household bills have risen 7%. This could be a consideration you make for your employees to reimburse this 7%. After all, they will be using more gas, water and electricity in order to carry out work for your business.
The crux of the matter is that there are no legal obligations for reimbursement of remote workers (yet!). However, common sense should be used in order to make decisions about whether remote workers are getting the short straw when opting to work from home full time.
As long as you have made considered decisions and communicate the outcomes effectively and fairly, employees should be happy that you have done all you can to support their decision.
If you would like any help or advice when drafting remote worker agreements then please get in contact using the email address info@applehr.co.uk and we will be happy to help.