As the restrictions on foreign travel are lifted, many employees are planning to go abroad. If they are required to quarantine on their return to the UK what are their pay rights?
Green, amber and red. In relaxing the rules on foreign travel, the government has introduced a traffic light system. This allows people in England to holiday abroad in “green” list countries. Travel to “amber” and “red” list countries is restricted, but an employee may have a valid reason for travelling there. Countries and territories can be moved between lists if conditions change, e.g. a green list country could turn amber and an amber country could turn green.
Mandatory ten days. Those who visit amber or red list countries are legally required to quarantine on their arrival back in the UK and you can’t require them to attend your workplace during this time. Also, it’s possible that an employee who has visited a green list country could be required to quarantine because they’ve travelled with a person who has tested positive for COVID-19. Where an employee is legally required to quarantine, what are their rights in relation to pay?
Pay rights. Ultimately, this will depend on what the employee can do during the quarantine period. If they can work from home, then you must pay them as normal. Where this isn’t possible due to the employee’s job role, you aren’t obliged to pay them. This is because the employee isn’t able to fulfil the terms of their employment contract during the quarantine period. You could, however, allow them to take the time off as annual leave or a mixture of annual leave and unpaid leave. Tip. Where an employee is required to quarantine on their arrival back in the UK, they have no right to receive statutory sick pay (SSP) unless they have COVID-19 symptoms. To avoid any misunderstandings, ensure that your employees know what their rights are to pay during any period of quarantine before they travel outside of the UK.
Where the employee can work from home, they must be paid their normal pay during quarantine. If this isn’t possible, they have no right to pay but could take annual leave. Statutory sick pay is only payable if they have COVID-19 symptoms.
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