It appears that the England Players are already being struck down with injuries of various sorts prior to the World Cup Matches, will your employees follow suit?

The World Cup takes place this year, starting in June. Because of the time difference between England and Japan/Korea, where the tournament is being held, most of the games will take place in the morning UK time.

Businesses should be aware of this, particularly the England matches. The 7 June 2002 match, when England play Argentina is likely to be most problematic. This match takes place at 12.30 pm UK time and it is envisaged that some employees may call in sick on that day, or simply not turn up for work, in order to watch the match at home on television.

If you anticipate this being a problem, it is helpful to issue a clear statement to all of your employees that the normal working relationship continues during the World Cup period and that employees will be expected to attend work as normal, including on those days when England is playing. In many businesses it will be appropriate to accede to employees wishes to watch the Word Cup wherever possible, but it is also important to consider those employees who will not wish to watch the World Cup. You may also wish to consider:

  • Making sure that if employees want time off, they take it as part of their annual leave and making clear your right to reasonably refuse leave requests.

  • Allowing staff to start later or work more flexible hours enabling them to make up the time over the next few days.

  • Allowing staff to have an extended lunch break or bring a TV into the workplace - if you choose this option, bear in mind breaks etc as the game could stretch well over two hours.

If you decide you do need a statement of policy, make sure it is fair and communicated throughout your workforce well in advance of the tournament. If everybody knows at the outset what the position is, they can make plans accordingly and they have no excuse for doing otherwise.

You may wish to make it clear that if the policy is breached this will be a disciplinary issue.

The content of this article does not constitute legal advice and should not be relied on in that way. Specific advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.