Strike Action – How you can help your employees

We are hearing of new strike action being announced on an almost daily basis as we head into December. Lots of employee unrest, exacerbated by increasing costs for all of us. Whilst it isn’t ideal at any time of year to have any interruptions in your business, it is most definitely felt harder on the run up to Christmas. 

Strikes announced so far include Royal Mail, Parcelforce, Trains and transport for London, Nurses, ambulance staff and dispatchers. Whether they impact your business directly, or your employees, here’s a couple of things you should consider in the run up to the strike action: 

If you rely on postal and delivery services

  • Consider looking at alternative couriers and book in the slots in advance where possible, they’re likely to be busier than usual. 
  • Consider a customer collection point to avoid the delays.
  • Communication will be key here, put messages on your website, social accounts and phonelines if used. The clearer you can be, the better.

Travel disruption 

  • Consider working from home options.
  • Alternative shifts start and finish times to avoid days of strike action.
  • Communicate the strike dates to employees in advance so that they can plan alternative routes. Some strikes include weekends and the Christmas period and so being clear on these in advance can help avoid any surprise staff shortages over those periods with people travelling for family commitments.

NHS staff 

  • It may be worth sharing H&S documents to refresh employees with processes to avoid any accidents. 
  • Sign posting any community initiatives, GP opening times and out of hours services that are available. 
  • Sharing all chemist opening times in the area.

We have become very adaptable after the pandemic, and it’s taught many businesses how to pivot quickly when needed. For me, one of the biggest actions here is to try and be ahead of the game as much as possible, keep up to date with all the latest news and announcements, and plan, plan and plan some more! Good luck!

Strike Action – How you can help your employees