John Lewis has said that it will continue to pay all its staff full sick pay if they have to self-isolate, regardless of their vaccination status.
The retailer says it would not be “right” to differentiate.
Following the recent confirmations by retailers IKEA, Ocado, Next, and Morrisons that they would only pay the legal minimum sick pay to unvaccinated staff if they are required to self-isolate after coming into contact with someone who has tested positive for COVID-19, John Lewis – which currently employs around 70,000 people in the UK – says it doesn’t “believe it’s right” to treat jabbed and unjabbed workers differently.
John Lewis’s Operations Director Andrew Murphy said he “cast no judgement”, and he added that the company was “not going to make any change of this type”.
Taking to LinkedIn to share his views on vaccination requirements in the workplace, Mr Murphy said: “We’re conscious that some businesses have changed their sick pay policy with regard to unvaccinated employees in some COVID-related absence scenarios, [but] at John Lewis, we’re not going to make any change of this type.
“We’re hugely supportive of the UK vaccination programme… [but] we just don’t believe it’s right to create a link between a Partner’s vaccination status and the pay they receive.
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“Leadership teams from every business have had to work incredibly hard to navigate the COVID years [as] there has been no map, guidebook or training programme to help anyone find the best way through.
“Very often, there’s just a choice between a range of unappealing options.
“We’re conscious that some businesses have changed their sick pay policy with regard to unvaccinated employees in some COVID-related absence scenarios, but we just don’t believe it’s right to create a link between a partner’s vaccination status and the pay they receive.”
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John Lewis has said that it will continue to pay all its staff full sick pay if they have to self-isolate / Credit: John Lewis
He continued in his statement: “We cast no judgement on the decisions of any other organisation.
“However, when life increasingly seems to present opportunities to create division – and with hopes rising that the pandemic phase of COVID may be coming to an end – we’re confident that this is the right approach for us.”
At present, people who had had at least two doses of a COVID vaccine are not required to self-isolate if they have been in close contact with someone infected – but by law, people who are unvaccinated and are contacted through the government’s ‘Test and Trace’ system must self-isolate for 10 days.
As mentioned, unjabbed employees at companies including Morrisons, IKEA, Ocado and Next who are told to isolate only get statutory sick pay of £96.35 a week, unlike their jabbed colleagues who get full sick pay.
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Any worker who tests positive for COVID at these retailers will get full sick pay though, regardless of their vaccination status.
While it appears a growing number of companies in the UK are following a US-style model of slashing sick pay for unvaccinated staff, John Lewis joins other supermarket retailers Sainsbury’s, Tesco, and Asda who are continuing to provide full sick pay for all employees when they are when they are isolating.
Man named and charged with ‘brutal’ murder at Peak District stone circle on summer solstice
Emily Sergeant
A man has been formally named as he’s charged with murder after a man’s life was taken in ‘the most brutal way’ following a summer solstice event.
He has been named as Szymon Babynko – a 23-year-old Polish national who now lives in London.
Babynko was named as part of an ongoing investigation, which was launched after Derbyshire Police were called to reports of a man’s body being found at Nine Ladies Stone Circle in the Peak District at 1:38pm on Monday 22 June, and when emergency services attended the scene, a 26-year-old man was found and pronounced dead.
The man was identified as Isaac Clare-Watts, from Nottingham, with police assuring his family are being supported by specialist officers.
Babynko was arrested on Thursday 25 June in connection with the incident, before being charged with murder today (29 June).
He has also been charged with attempted murder in relation to another incident on Hady Lane in Chesterfield on Thursday 25 June, the same day he was arrested.
Investigators say they still remain ‘keen’ to hear from anyone who was at the stone circle site over the weekend – which was notably the weekend of the summer solstice – as well as anyone with video footage from the event, and dashcam footage of vehicles arriving and leaving over the weekend.
A Major Incident Public Portal (MIPP) has been set up where members of the public can send information to police directly.
Babynko has been remanded in custody and is due to appear at Derby Magistrates Court this week, with more updates on the case to follow.
Featured Image – Wikimedia Commons
News
Man jailed after violently assaulting two female police officers at Manchester Airport
Emily Sergeant
A man who assaulted two female police officers at Manchester Airport in a high-profile case back in 2024 has now been jailed.
PCs Lydia Ward and Ellie Cook – who each have eight years of experience and service at Greater Manchester Police (GMP) – were part of a team of officers based at Manchester Airport who responded to a report of a headbutt in Terminal 2 on the evening of 23 July 2024.
When officers went to arrest the man, named as 21-year-old Mohammed Fahir Amaaz from Rochdale, he initially resisted before turning and attacking police.
During the shocking incident, PC Ward – an unarmed officer – suffered a broken nose after being subjected to actual bodily harm by Amaaz, while PC Cook, who was armed, suffered an injured jaw after being assaulted.
Many may remember that a short clip of the incident – which was recorded by a bystander – went viral after it was uploaded to social media without any wider context, leading to the officers involved becoming subjected to online abuse and condemnation.
A CCTV image of the brawl in action / Credit: CPS
PC Ward described the whole situation as ‘so confusing’.
“I have never seen anyone so violent,” she added in a victim impact statement. “I have never been so scared. It was utterly terrifying.”
PC Cook explained that she was left ‘traumatised by the incident’, adding: “I hate that we were judged by everyone. We were just doing a job – we were trying to protect the public.”
Last week (Friday 26 June), Amaaz appeared at Liverpool Crown Court where he has sentenced to three and a half years in jail for his role in the incident.
Speaking on the sentencing, GMP’s Chief Constable Sir Stephen Watson commented: “This incident began after a man was headbutted in a public place in front of his family.
“Our officers were responding quickly to precisely the sort of outrageous criminal behaviour that rightly offends the public. In undertaking their duties, officers were met with resistance and violence, followed by online vilification, condemnation and adverse commentary from those who did not have the full facts.
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Rochdale man, 20, found guilty of assaulting police officers at Manchester Airport
“It is vital that officers get the respect and support they deserve for routinely putting themselves in harm’s way to protect the public.
“Assaults on police officers are sadly all too common – 35 of my officers are assaulted every week across GM – and such incidents can never be justified.”
Emily Sergeant -
24th January 2022 
