Coronavirus - boss self isolating in the office ? advice please ?

Megsmum

I wonder if anyone can advise please ?  I work for a very small company (9 of us).  We all either have our own offices or a maximum of two sharing a large office.  
My boss has stated that he intends to come into work and will sleep at the office if he cannot commute back and forth everyday (he drives in).  We have asked what he will then do if he has to self isolate.  He has stated that he will self isolate within his own office.  We have one kitchen area and one bathroom facility.  An employee then commented that the employees would then not be able to come into work as he would be self isolating in the workplace.  He has stated that this will be each individual's choice.  However, if we don't come in because HE is poorly and self isolating we will only be entitled to Statutory Sick Pay !!  This can't be right, surely ?  Can anyone give us any advice please ? Thank you.

gettingtheresometime

Does he live with anyone as I understood the guidelines to be if 1 person in a household had to self isolate then so did the entire household.

one thought may be that he intends to live in the office in the event that there are fuel shortages or even if there is a lock-in as like Italy or Spain

Megsmum

He does live with his wife, yes.
I can understand that he might want to stay in the office.  My concern is that if he becomes ill, he is intending to remain in the office.  This means that we will not be able to attend work, even if we are well.  He is suggesting that should this be the case, we would not be entitled to anything other than stat sick pay.  This is my concern.    I don't think we should be penalised because he is ill and has chosen to remain in the office.  I hope that makes sense.

andygb

He should not be allowed to self isolate at a workplace, where he is putting other employees health at risk.

He should self suspend on medical grounds and it is he who should receive SSP.

Megsmum

Thank you - that's what I think.  

Andy_L

Megsmum said:

I wonder if anyone can advise please ?  I work for a very small company (9 of us).  ...
My boss has stated that he intends to come into work and will sleep at the office if he cannot commute back and forth everyday (he drives in).  

Is he just your boss or is he also the business owner?

ACG

It might be worth asking your employer if he has run his plans by the HSE.

Surely putting employees at risk is illegal? 

General_Grant

ACG said:

It might be worth asking your employer if he has run his plans by the HSE.

Surely putting employees at risk is illegal? 

How is he putting employees at risk?  He would be excluding them from the workplace.

ACG

Hes not excluding them or at least that is not how I have read it. 
He is giving them an option of not coming in and not getting paid properly. I suspect that if it was taken to the HSE they would take a pretty dim view of it. 

I could even see the employees taking the employer to a tribunal and having a good chance of winning. 

In any event, as an employer do you want the HSE having you on their radar as a possible bad employer? Or a tribunal hanging over your head all because you were a selfish (insert word here)? 

74jax

General_Grant said:

ACG said:

It might be worth asking your employer if he has run his plans by the HSE.

Surely putting employees at risk is illegal? 

How is he putting employees at risk?  He would be excluding them from the workplace.

That's not how I read it. Plus they share facilities, so even if hes in the office he will still come out. 

General_Grant

74jax said:

General_Grant said:

ACG said:

It might be worth asking your employer if he has run his plans by the HSE.

Surely putting employees at risk is illegal? 

How is he putting employees at risk?  He would be excluding them from the workplace.

That's not how I read it. Plus they share facilities, so even if hes in the office he will still come out. 

Looking back, I agree that because he was putting the onus on the employees to decide whether to come in if he were self-isolating, then he wasn't actually himself excluding them.  Then again if I self-isolate I can't also invite people to visit me.  So I'll withdraw my earlier comment.