Insurers are not requiring workers to be vaccinated upon their return to the office but say they are continuing to err on the side of caution in terms of being Covid-safe.
According to reports, some of the world’s biggest corporate names such as Netflix, Google and Goldman Sachs are requiring workers to be vaccinated before they will be permitted to return to the workplace.
However, several of the UK’s biggest insurers have confirmed they will not be adopting these measures, partly due to the success of the vaccination programme already.
A spokesperson for Royal London told Health & Protection the insurer was continuing to follow government guidance and was starting to see more employees transition back to its offices in England as a result.
“As guidelines change in Scotland and Ireland we anticipate a similar increase in colleagues coming back into our offices,” the insurer said.
“We are following government guidance and do not therefore require colleagues to be ‘double jabbed’ before they return to the workplace.
“We ask that colleagues take personal responsibility for continuing to keep themselves and others safe and have protocols in place to reassure colleagues that our offices are a safe environment.”
According to Sam Reason, head of continuity and crisis management at Zurich UK, around 10% of its workforce have return to its various sites across the country.
“We continue to follow government guidance for keeping our employees safe, for example encouraging the use of face masks and to be mindful of social distancing where appropriate,” he said.
“Similarly, full vaccination is not mandatory for those who choose to return. We believe we are striking the right balance with our health and safety measures, combined with our hybrid working approach, keeping employees safe, while meeting the needs of our customers.”
Legal & General said: “Mandatory vaccination is a highly complex topic and not something we are currently considering.”
It noted that the success of the country’s vaccination programme had been very encouraging, but it was only one component of developing safe working environments and practices to give its staff greater confidence about the workplace.
Finally, Holloway Friendly revealed it had not reduced its Covid-related measures in the workplace, but was not requiring vaccinations.
“We’re operating social distancing and maximum capacity levels in meeting rooms and communal areas, plus we ask colleagues to wear masks when they are not at their desks,” it said.
“As many of our colleagues still only have had one jab, we have a duty of care to ensure we carry on with Covid-secure workplace guidelines.
“We plan to keep these practices in place for some time so the topic of vaccinations is less of a concern for us.”