Lisa Bryson, Partner, Employment and Immigration, Eversheds Sutherland in Belfast
Lisa Bryson, Partner, Employment and Immigration, Eversheds Sutherland in Belfast commented:
“The Executive has indicated a desire to take a cautious approach to re-opening Northern Ireland and has rightly placed the health and well-being of the public at the heart of the document. The general overview of how the Executive plans to re-open the economy and society assists with providing a framework for businesses to consider, however, greater clarity is needed for employers on how and when Northern Ireland business can move through each stage of the five-step plan.”
“It is important that the health of the public comes first and that appropriate safety measures are in place to beat the virus, but there is likely to continue to be a high level of anxiety among employers and employees about how and when they can get back to work.”
“Employers will need take a medium to long term view on re-opening measures, given that public health professionals are warning that Covid-19 is likely to be a risk for many months to come. Consideration will need to be given to what the ongoing financial impact will be for those businesses currently unable to operate at full capacity (or at all), how they might change to or adopt new operating requirements, and also, unfortunately, whether or not existing operations or business can continue in their current shape and size, or at all”.
“The ways of living and working in Northern Ireland will look very different for a long-time to come. Many new questions will need to be addressed around what the ‘new norm’ will look like for each workplace and how they impact on every individual. Continued collaboration and flexibility will be required from everyone to ensure that new working practices are implemented smoothly and safely.”
“From the document published today, we are at least one small step forward in terms of a pathway. Timeframes, or a more definitive roadmap, is however, a necessary component to enable critical business survival decisions to be made. This is also important for the general well-being of people who are concerned about their own individual futures.”