Ending a homeworking arrangement

It should be agreed from the beginning of either an individual or collective homeworking agreement, how and when the arrangement will be reviewed and what circumstances would lead to it being terminated.

Homeworking can come to an end for a variety of reasons. A homeworker may wish to review their working arrangement if there is a change in their personal or domestic circumstances, for example if they have moved to a house which is not suitable for homeworking.

If change is initiated by the employer it may be because they have concerns about the homeworker’s performance, are worried that they are suffering from social isolation, or because of a workplace reorganisation.

There may be occasions where it is not possible to reverse the decision to homework. The move to homeworking may have been part of the employer’s strategy to downsize so office space may have been reduced or reallocated. There may be cost implications too — the costs of reversal, for example, providing new equipment, may be too high.

If a contractual homeworker is unable to continue to work at home on a permanent basis, it needs to be agreed at the outset what this will mean for their employment.