Aug 17th, 2021
5 mins
Working Safely Guidance Update
The government has updated guidance for working safely in England. This includes the exemption for those people fully vaccinated and those under the age of 18years and 6 months no longer need to isolate if they’ve had close contact with someone with COVID-19. If they get any COVID-19 symptoms, they should self-isolate immediately and get a PCR test. This updated guidance for Offices, factories, warehouses and similar indoor environments can be found by using the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/working-safely-during-covid-19/updates
Measures are still in place to stop people physically coming to work, when they’re legally required to stay home. This includes people who:
- have tested positive forCOVID-19
- haveCOVID-19 symptoms
- live in a household with someone who has symptoms, unless they’reexempt from self-isolation
- have been told to self-isolate byNHS Test and Trace
NHS Test & Trace Update
If you are told to self-isolate by NHS Test and Trace and are due to work somewhere other than your place of self-isolation, you have a legal duty to inform your employer as soon as possible before you are next due to work. Failure to do so could result in a £50 fine.
NHS COVID-19 App
If the NHS COVID-19 app identifies that you have been in close contact with a confirmed case, it will ask if you are under 18 and 6 months or if you have been fully vaccinated. If so, you will be advised to get tested but not to self-isolate. If you are over 18 and 6 months and not fully vaccinated, it will advise you to self-isolate and get a test. There is no legal requirement to tell your employer about an app alert.
There are some specific workplace scenarios when you are advised to pause the contact tracing feature. These are:
- when you are working behind a fixed Perspex (or equivalent) screen and are fully protected from other people
- if you store your phone in a locker or communal area, for example while working
- if you are a worker in health and social care and are wearing medical gradePPE such as a surgical mask
- if you are a healthcare worker working in a healthcare building such as a hospital or GP surgery
Contact tracing can be paused within the app by selecting ‘manage contact tracing’ on the home screen. It’s important you turn the contact tracing toggle back on as soon as you are not in one of the above scenarios, for example, when you retrieve your phone from your locker. To help you, you will be given the option to pause the feature for different time periods – after which you will receive a reminder to turn the contact tracing feature back on
