Travel Quarantine and Isolation Pay

In short, if the employee can work from their home, or their quarantine hotel, then they may expect to be paid as normal. If this is not possible and there are no other, feasible options to allocate the employee to a special project on a temporary basis, businesses may not be obliged to pay.

Business Travel

If the employee is in self-isolation following a required business trip, it would be advisable to pay them during the full isolation period, regardless of whether they are able to complete their work or not. To financially penalise an employee on their return from business travel could be a breach of the implied term of mutual trust and confidence, and could even lead to a constructive unfair dismissal claim. 

Paid Leave

Employers have health and safety obligations to other staff, so businesses may decide to continue to pay the self-isolating employee for remaining at home or being in a quarantine hotel even if they cannot work, simply to ensure that self-isolation rules are being adhered to. This could mean using up an employee’s annual leave, although this is not without difficulty under current employment law.

To insist that the 10-day quarantine period is taken as annual leave, employers could introduce a temporary policy across the workforce. However, the unilateral change in terms and conditions could amount to a breach of contract could lead to claims of constructive unfair dismissal, and ideally they should agree to the change. There is also a potential risk of a discrimination claim from those of certain nationalities who wish to visit relatives will be disproportionately affected, although the employer may be able to justify this. 

Another way to overcome this issue would be to grant additional paid leave in addition to the normal holiday allowance, and this option may be the most appropriate if home working is not an option and business finances allow. This would also be the best solution if the quarantine was suddenly impose. 

Alternatively, before the trip employers could agree that any quarantine period is classed as a period of unpaid leave if home working is not an option, and business finances do not enable the granting of extra paid leave. 

SSP During Quarantine

Employees who are self-isolation because they or someone in their household has contracted COVID-19 symptoms can claim SSP, as can those who are on isolation under the test and trace system. However, if an employee has chosen to go on holiday, they have taken the risk and presumably knew of the quarantine requirement when they returned. Existing rules for SSP only accommodate claims if it is ‘known or reasonably suspected that the individual has been in contact with a case of a relevant infection or contamination.’ Returning from travelling does not necessarily lead to a reasonable suspicion of contact with someone infected with COVID-19.

However, if the employee tests positive for COVID-19 at the end of their holiday, then SSP should be made available. If the employee has a negative test and no symptoms, treating a post-holiday quarantine as sick leave is not an option, as currently post-travel quarantine is not a ground for claiming SSP. Most companies’ individual sick pay schemes are unlikely to cover this either. If, at any point during the 10-day quarantine period, an employee begins to show symptoms, then the usual processes for sick leave and SSP apply. 

Some other options include attempting to impose limits on employees’ ability to travel abroad in the first place, requiring the employees to take annual leave, or placing the employees on furlough, although this is not the purpose of the scheme. However, if the travel is business-related, and it is financially feasible for the business, paying the employees during the quarantine period regardless of whether they are able to work from home or not, is the safest option for employers.