Employment Matters November 2006

The Cobbetts’ Guide to dealing with Ashes issues

Who can forget the fervour generated by the Ashes cricket matches in the summer of 2005, in what was one of the most exciting series of Test cricket ever seen? It only seems like yesterday that Freddie Flintoff and Co overcame the odds to triumph over the previously all-conquering Aussies. Yet, less than 18 months on, we get to go through it all again as the Aussies attempt to regain those burnt bails which mean so much to both nations.

The only problem for us Poms (particularly Pommy employers) is that it’s all happening in the middle of the night…

Stumps at dawn…

There was much coverage in the media earlier this year about the impact of employees taking sick days to watch the TV coverage of the football World Cup, or to recover from the next day’s hangovers. However, as most of the games people wanted to watch took place outside normal working hours or at weekends, most diehard football fans could ensure that the World Cup didn’t interfere with their daily working lives.

Since most of the matches in this winter’s Ashes series in Australia will take place between midnight and 7 am GMT, you could be forgiven for thinking that the impact on UK employers will be negligible. However, that would be to ignore the fact that there will be many ardent cricket fans who are so keen to see England repeat their Ashes triumph that they will stay glued to their television sets late into the night, leaving them unfit for work the next day, if they come in at all. Even a conscientious employee who only stays up to watch the cricket at weekends may find it difficult to get back into a normal sleeping pattern in time for the start of the working week.

So how can employers guard against such problems, and what action can be taken if they arise?