Euro 2024: Employers’ guide to the workplace implications

by Stephen Simpson, Brightmine Principal Editor- Employment Law and Compliance

The 2024 Uefa European Football Championship — Euro 2024 — kicks off tonight with hosts Germany taking on Scotland in Munich. Twenty-four nations are taking part between 14 June and the final on 14 July. Employers should plan ahead to make the most of the impact that this large sporting event can have on staff mental health and morale, while also planning ahead to minimise disruption.

1. Think about staff mental health and morale

Employers can use the tournament to raise their workforce’s morale. Provided that operational needs allow, employers can:

• Screen key matches in the workplace.
• Allow employees to watch games together during working hours (for hybrid/remote workers, this could include arranging remote “watch-alongs”).
• Permit special decorations to be temporarily displayed in workplaces (such as flags of participating countries).
• Temporarily relax dress codes (for example allowing football shirts to be worn).

Workplace events related to the Euros should therefore be optional and workers should not be disadvantaged or derided if they do not want to take part.

2. Increase working hours flexibility during the tournament

To further improve morale and boost employee relations, employers may permit temporary changes to working patterns to allow employees to watch games. For example, employers could let employees:

• Finish early to watch an early-evening game; or
• Take a couple of hours off to watch a match and make up the lost time later.

Employers may see an increase in holiday requests from employees who want time off to watch matches.

Employers could be flexible with holiday requests — for example by allowing requests at short notice where this is feasible.

3. Maintain workforce productivity during the matches

Some employers may experience a reduction in productivity because employees are watching matches when they should be working.

This could become a particular problem when the employee is working from home and the employer has less control over their activities during working hours.

It is a good idea for employers to remind employees in advance of the Euros, or in advance of key games, that they should not be watching the football when they should be working.

Employers can also warn employees about unauthorised absence, for example pulling a sickie to watch games, or taking sick leave on the day after a game because they have a hangover.

4. Beware risk of discrimination during Euro 2024

Employers need to be aware of the potential discrimination issues that could arise. In particular, employers should ensure that:

• If they offer special arrangements for home nation fans, such as increased flexible working, they offer the same arrangements to fans from other countries.
• Staff are made aware that harassment linked to the event, for example hostile or racist remarks about a particular country, will not be tolerated.

5. Remind employees of their responsibilities outside work

Matches will be shown in public places across the UK such as pubs and fan parks, where alcohol will be plentiful.

News of incidents and bad behaviour can spread like wildfire on social media. To reduce the risk of reputational damage, it is good practice for employers to remind employees that they should behave themselves outside work when watching the football.

It is settled case law that employers can take disciplinary action for misconduct outside work and this is a potentially fair reason for dismissal. In the key case Post Office v Liddiard, the Court of Appeal accepted that an employee was fairly dismissed after his involvement in football hooliganism brought his employer into disrepute.