Over three quarters of staff will formally complain or leave if Covid safety is ignored on their return to work

· 78% of employees will either raise a formal complaint or consider leaving their workplace if Covid safety is not taken seriously on their return to work

· 12% of employees surveyed said they would leave their workplace if Covid safety is not taken seriously on their return to work

· Over 80% of Gen Z and Millennial employees said they would consider making a formal complaint or consider leaving if Covid safety is not taken seriously

The findings of a recent survey, commissioned by digital health pass tested.me, of 1,144 UK employees has revealed that 78% of employees will either raise a formal complaint or consider leaving their workplace, if Covid safety is not taken seriously on their return to work. A further 12% said they would leave altogether.

The UK’s youth and those in the age groups yet to be vaccinated were found to be more cautious over returning to work. Over 80% of both Gen Z and Millennial employees revealed that they would consider making a formal complaint or consider leaving if their employer failed to ensure the health and safety of all employees.

Comparatively, the generations who have been able to get the first jab are slightly less concerned over Covid workplace safety. Just 69% of Gen X and 71% of Baby Boomers said they would consider making a formal complaint or leaving their workplace if Covid safety is not taken seriously.

Across the four nations, employees in Northern Ireland are demanding the most of their employers in regard to implementing Covid safety measures, with 96% saying that they will either raise a formal complaint or consider leaving their workplace if they fail to do so. Just more than three quarters of Scottish workers (78%) and 69% of Welsh employees said that they would consider making a formal complaint or leaving their workplace.

When it comes to industry, 90% of employees working in Sales, Media and Marketing said they would consider filing a complaint or consider leaving their position for pastures new. Unsurprisingly, following one of the most difficult years in history, 83% of Healthcare workers would also raise a formal complaint or consider leaving their role.

This is followed by 87% of those working in Architecture, Engineering and Building, 78% in Travel & Transport, 74% in Retail, Catering & Leisure, and 72% in Education.

The size of the organisation made little difference into the number of employees who would raise a complaint or consider leaving their position.

Of organisations with 250–500 employees, 58% said that they would consider making a formal complaint, in comparison to the 50% of employees in medium-sized enterprises (between 50–99 employees).

Additionally, 31% of those in large organisations with more than 500 employees said they would consider leaving their company if Covid safety was ignored, with 28% working in medium-sized enterprises saying the same.

“Businesses across the board cannot afford to ignore the voices of their employees,” said Donald MacKinnon, Group Legal Director on behalf employment law specialists, Law At Work, who are encouraging and helping employers to manage the return to work safely.

“Employees have every right to require that their company has taken the necessary steps to ensure their safety upon returning to the workplace and failure to do so could not only have a detrimental impact on the employer and their staff, but also lead to claims being raised at employment tribunals.”

Speaking on the importance of bringing staff back to the office in a safe and secure manner, Simon Osman, Chief Executive of digital health pass tested.me, said:

“Kick-starting the economy and getting people back socialising with their colleagues and working together is essential at this moment in time.

But with a real focus on people returning to workplaces, covid health and safety protocols need to be in place to ensure a safe return for everyone involved.

The UK population has never valued their health and wellness more than right now, and businesses who fail to adhere to the needs of their employees will likely find themselves with unhappy staff or employees choosing to work elsewhere, according to our survey.”

For more information, please contact Alec Harris, ZPB Associates at alec.harris@zpb-associates.com or 07597571575.

Notes to editors:

About tested.me:

Tested.me is a personal health verification app which allows an individual to record COVID-19 tests results, vaccinations, and other health data such as their temperature, and share it securely and confidentially with their employer, or a hospitality, entertainment venue or travel hub they wish to enter. This gives employees, employers, managers of venues and visitors the confidence that everyone there has taken appropriate health precautions. Tested.me is using technology for good, putting individuals in control, allowing them to share their data when and how they wish.

The tested.me app can be linked to a dashboard giving an employer or venue manager a real-time overview of the health status of everyone in the location, using information shared voluntarily and securely by individuals.

Tested.me has been successfully implemented in over 600 business across the globe and with more than 300,000 individual users so far.

By using the same industry-standard identity verification and data security measures as your online bank, tested.me ensures personal data stored on the app stays personal to that individual and is only shared when and how they decide to do so.

Tested.me’s founders want to help the world recover from COVID-19 by allowing people to work, socialise and travel safely together again.

About the Census Wide survey commissioned by tested.me:

All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from Census Wide. Total sample size was 1,144

employees from across the UK in April 2021. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighed and are representative of all UK adults (aged 18+).