Can my employer make me apply for key worker place?

[gonewiththegin]

First time poster looking for advice please.

Both DH and I are key workers and can both work from home.

My employer (new department from first lockdown) is insisting I cannot work effectively from home and should be taking up the key worker place in school. I don’t feel the have any right to make those decisions for my child and was just wondering if anyone has any knowledge/similar experience.

Thanks

They can’t make you but they can also sack you for poor performance if that’s how the contract as worded. No such cases have been tried in court yet but I’d assume you could try them for unfair dismissal.

No, they can’t make you. But on the flip side lm sure they will want work productivity and performance maintained. Which home schooling may well impact

Thank you both for your input.

Home schooling will have an affect on my performance, as it will the majority of my team who are affected. It was the same situation back in March and the same company who allowed me to work from home and home school and had no issues with my performance or decision not to take up the key worker place.

I think I should contact the union and get some advice.

Can both of you work effectively from home while your children are home schooling?

Which in most jobs means giving undivided attention to work for substantial periods of time (eg an hour) at a time for 7-8 hours a day, probably between 0800 and 1800.

If not, then sending your kids to school will allow you both to do that. If you can, then that's fine, and you are extremely lucky (or your kids are very self reliant).

Most people cannot work and help their kids learn at the same time. Your employer knows that too.

Our local authority will not give a place to key workers who can work from home so would you definitely even be able to get a place? We are both key workers working from home but it just doesn’t sit well with me to take that place away from someone who really needs it.

In the midst of a global pandemic I think employers have to give a bit of leeway if there’s a bit of an affect on performance. Even people without kids at home might struggle for other reasons, effects on mental health, isolation, lack of suitable place to work at home etc etc.

I think your employer is telling you that you aren't cutting it. Take the place and do your job.

Our school won’t take key worker children if a parent can work from home.

CAN you work effectively from home with your child at home?

My performance will be affected as it was in March however not substantially. My previous department were happy that the reason for that was largely out with my control and I was working longer hours to try and be as productive as I could on any given day.

My letter form school says the same if you can work from home you are not eligible for a place. It doesn’t mention effectively but my senior in the new department has come out to everyone who initially had a reasonable adjustment agreed with their line manager that it’s no longer going to be possible as that is not us doing our job effectively.

They are now trying to force my hand in putting in a key worker application and I think this is completely wrong.

There are people in every scenario who use a situation to their advantage and will be less productive because they can. I am not that way inclined and I am struggling to understand why two different departments of the same company have such different approaches to the same situation.

Thanks for all your replies

It does sound like your company are being particularly unsympathetic and inflexible.

I’d take the approach of putting to them, in writing, what steps you will be taking to ensure you can work effectively. If this involves them making reasonable adjustments, such as a change in working pattern, ask for that then too.

I don’t believe they have any right to demand you send your child in to school using key worker grounds. That’s beyond the remit of what your work can ask.

Or as a fall back ask to be furloughed for childcare reasons.

You don’t have a right to home working unless it’s in your contract? Your employer doesn’t have to accommodate reduced productivity, could you temporarily reduce your hours or use holiday as a compromise? They can’t force you to send your child to school but you can’t force them to pay full pay for part time hours. Can your partner take some of the childcare load?

@Youngatheart00 I work for a government department, we are classed as business critical and unable to be furloughed. I suspect there is enormous pressure on heads of any and all departments especially when there is no end in sight at the moment.

However my work place has absolutely no say in the choices I make for my child. It should be noted that members of my team who also wfh have taken emergency childcare which is inconsistent with the eligibility and probably not helping my case but I will not risk sending my child to school if I do not absolutely have to.

I will prepare something in writing first thing and get it sent over, thank you.

@BungleandGeorge I know I don’t have the right but we aren’t able to come in to the office unless we absolutely cannot work from home which I can. My husband and I would be 50/50 with home schooling as was the case in March. It would be very minimal impact on productivity. I have offered to reduce my hours, work longer periods over the course of the day and my only other option is now to apply for unpaid leave.

If they won’t let you reduce your hours or make up time (if that’s possible for the job you do) I’d say they are being unreasonable. If you’re putting it in writing I would include that as it shows you’ve been reasonable. Does your child have any health vulnerabilities that you’re worried about, that would be another thing you could mention

@BungleandGeorge I temporarily reduced my hours last year and they won’t allow me to drop anymore as it doesn’t meet the business needs. Again this request is at my new seniors discretion. Definitely worth noting I have tried to be accommodating and will note that on my letter. Thank you

I don't think they can force you, but there are certainly employers with expectations that if the job is on the list, the children go to school. Mine put subtle pressure on me. Admittedly my job is unpredictable, but some predictability could happen, they just won't do it.

If they are not allowing you to EFH because it affects the business, then surely the options are apply for keyworker status with school, or resign? Or am I missing something? The service was affected by WFH- obviously not just you personally, and as it falls within the remit of being eligible to continue working in the office, the enterprise has decided this is more appropriate?

They can’t tell you to put your child in school - but they can tell you to come to work. What childcare arrangements you make are up to you. You should send your children to school!
Work are now telling you that you can’t work from home, so you need to go in. If you don’t want to use school then your husband is at home.
I go into work and my husband (also a keyworker) is WFH with the kids. It’s what people all around the country are doing!

You need to up your productivity sadly I would apply for a place

But they’re not being unreasonable! You can get a place, and your work is obviously suffering from attempting to home school alongside work. The government has planned for precisely this scenario - which is why a place is available. (It’s literally the only thing they have planned for.) I don’t honestly understand your point.

Government departments are typically very good about flexible arrangements.

If they are saying that they are concerned about your productivity, then I would interpret that as them taking the hit first time round, but being unable to do so again. As you say yourself, you were working long/odd hours to 'try' to keep your productivity up.

Have you had an appraisal since lockdown 1? Because if not you need to find out if it's gong to say that your work had been fine, or if it is going to say workrate low but acceptable in the circumstances.

If the latter, remember that the circumstances are now not the same

It depends so much on the age of your children. Secondary (sn aside) you can leave to work through their online lessons and watch the bbc schools output, they can save questions for breaks, whereas primary you probably need to supervise more

In the private sector ,generally, if you can't effectively WFH,you will be told to get to work,and your childcare arrangements are not their issue

I would expect the public sector to be more sympathetic,but there are limits

If you qualify for a school place then that seems reasonable

I think a lot of this depends on how old your child is.
Our 11 yr old is now on set 5 of remote working since September. We got him up and running and confident with it before I got a job, and he has just been getting on with it while DH wfh. There is no conflict.

The 9 yr old is on his first set. We are attempting to get him confident using the programs (different to the stuff used in lockdown 1) with 2 days leave from me yesterday and today. He is under instructions to make a note of anything he cant do and someone will look at it with him after work. And if something cant be submitted by the 4.30 deadline, I will contact the teacher and explain. We are giving it a go.
BUT if he was a little younger or didnt have his older brother in the house as well, I think we would be looking at a school place. He has company before 9am and after 3, and lunch. Yesterday we did school before lunch, and screens after lunch.

It is not possible to school and work FT and parent if everything is constrained within a standard school/working day if the child is young enough to need pretty continuous supervision and everything needs to be done to the same standard as having school/childcare take one part of the requirements.

You say it's a govt. Department and this has come from your senior manager.

Can you go above their head. So if it's come from your SEO could you approach the grade 7?

I would set out a business case if you can.

Maybe ask for a 2 week period to show that with flexible hours you can be productive and hit your targets?

I am counted as a key worker but I will not send my child to school, so I appreciate how you feel. I was really surprised that all our govt. Department counted as key workers tbh.

If they continue to insist then yes, contact the union.

They're asking you to put your health and your child's health at risk.