Please government, enforce a stricter coronavirus lockdown now!
This video is a direct plea to the government to enforce a stricter coronavirus lockdown in the UK, especially for employees forced to travel into work by unscrupulous employers.
In the capital we have seen thousands of commuters packed onto busy tubes. This is a disaster waiting to happen for the NHS and for vulnerable people who will contract the virus and not be able to access treatment.
We urgently need to flatten the curve and avoid a tsunami of cases. As of 27 March 2020 the government rule is that “no one must travel to work unless strictly necessary”. However the definition of ‘strictly necessary’ is completely missing. This means that employers who think it is strictly necessary to make money can force their employees to come into work.
This is not a theoretical problem. My law firm, Monaco Solicitors, has been receiving enquiries every day from employees who are forced to go into work when it is not necessary. Two examples I give in this video are:
[1] Someone who can do their job from home but their boss refuses to give them a laptop or let them take the desktop home. And their partner is a vulnerable person too.
[2] Someone forced to work in a factory producing non essential goods, which are not things like medical supplies or food, so can simply be closed down for public health.
In both these cases, the hundreds of people at work are mixing in the canteen and in the workplace and it is not possible to maintain social distancing.
The governments of Italy, France, Spain, Germany, China and many other top economies, have all enforced much stricter lockdown. Only the USA has given people more choice than the UK, and the USA is quickly becoming an epicentre of the Covid-19 infection.
Let’s put the NHS and peoples’ lives first, and let’s put the economy second for now. Make a list of essential services and ban all other employers from forcing their employees to come into work. Please.
Further advice and information for employees in the coronavirus pandemic
See our other practical guides, including:
Coronavirus: Government pay for self employed
Unfair dismissal due to Covid 19 / Coronavirus
We also offer a free coronavirus email helpline for employees who need answers to questions like those in this article and/or if you have a low paid job so can’t afford to hire a lawyer. You can also access our coronavirus letter templates for employees, for free, on this website.
If you think you need the help of a specialist employment lawyer with your employment case, including on a no win no fee basis, please request a free consultation.