NEWS IN BRIEF

As the World Cup kicks off in South Africa on 11 June, Acas (the government’s conciliation service) is anticipating that some employees may take time off to watch matches starting at 12.30, 15.00 and 19.30 (UK time).

It has therefore issued guidance to employers about avoiding absences for the duration of the competition, urging them to start talking to employees early on to manage their expectations and minimise the impact on workplace productivity.

It is advising employers to be:

• Flexible, where possible - for example, by altering start and finish times during the working day or allowing longer lunch breaks

• Clear about what they expect from employees - in terms of attendance and performance during the World Cup. Managing employees expectations of what might be possible is key to keeping them onside

• Communicative - start talking to employees now about the World Cup and how they hope to manage leave and working hours

• Honest - if an employer cannot accommodate any changes to their work practices then they need to say so. Also, they may need to remind employees that any special arrangements for watching matches are only temporary

• Fair - employers need to be seen to be fair about the way they respond to requests for time off and avoid favouritism.