World Cup Fever - employees wanting to take annual leave

The 2014 World Cup started on Thursday 12 June and will finish on Sunday 13 July. This means that 64 matches are being played over the course of the competition. But is this going to cause you a problem as an employer?

It is likely that some of your employees will want to watch at least one of the games. England’s matches fall at the weekend or in the evening so would not impinge on “normal” office hours but some games are being played later in the evening and will this mean that employees do not turn up for work the next day or will this cause problems for night work or shift work?

Acas has produced a new guidance to help employers prepare for potential workplace issues that could arise over the World Cup period.

You should have policies in place that cover time-off requests, sickness absence, website use during working hours or watching TV during popular sporting events.

A final point to note is that employers should not assume that all employees will be supporting England. If exceptions are made for England matches, they will need to be made for employees supporting other teams.

Remember clarity, communication and consistency. Have a clear position on something, communicate it to your employees and then stick to it.

For further information or any other employment issue please contact  Jayne Harrison or a member of our Employment Team.