An article entitled “Bosses must follow labour law” which appeared in Cayman News Service this week set me to thinking about the employment law issues which will, and are, arising from the COVID-19 pandemic. The article made depressing reading because the thrust of the story was that employers are forcing workers to use up vacation during the temporary shutdown, and are being fired“without getting a cent”. This may be an overstatement. The Department of Labour and Pensions have apparently warned employers to follow the law. This story is depressing on a number of levels. Everyone, employers and employees alike, are already concerned about the pandemic. We are all worried. To lose your job or your business is life-changing. It’s tough for workers who have mortgages and school fees to pay but also for employers to pay rent or mortgages along with a host of other business overheads. In short, we are all in this together whether we are employer, employed or self- employed. Carping is not helpful and can, in fact, have deleterious consequences.
As each lockdown or curfew restricted day has passed, I have been reminding myself of the stoic principle: Amor Fati which means ‘to love your fate’. It is the Stoics method of dealing with anxiety it involves embracing the outcome – whatever that may be. If you are unable to control what is going to happen there is no need to worry about it. We cannot control the coronavirus. It attacked everyone rich and poor, young and old. I read a heartwarming letter on LinkedIn where the correspondent referred to the employees of the Dart organization as not being at risk of losing their jobs despite the effect of COVID-19on the hotel industry. However, there may be few Employers with budgets similar to the Dart organization. I was in equal measure saddened by the comments section of the article where readers expressed their, often ill-informed, views on the article. The comments ranged from vivid complaints against employers who “are rich” and have a profited from the workers’ efforts or to the lack of trade unions to protect workers.
On the other side, there are employers who have no cash flow as a result of the pandemic measures and have their own legal and financial commitments. Some businesses have reserves, some have perhaps been operating on a shoestring and as such would be unable to pay severance pay and other such payments. The result says one commentator is: “They have to be wound up.”
In Cayman, we have a developed system of employment law but I suspect it will creak and groan under the weight of complaints and lawsuits once the pandemic has passed. It is difficult to predict what the outcome of the various labour complaints will be bearing in mind the extraordinary and unusual nature of the business closures caused by COVID-19 and the Government’s efforts to prevent it’s spread. Dismissal by reason of redundancy may well become a common theme in the employers’ quest to reduce overheads. Redundancy is well understood in the Cayman Islands but even our jurisprudence may be harshly tested by the manifold issues which will be thrown up by the pandemic. Dismissal by reason of redundancy has to take place in certain circumstances for it to be considered to be a fair dismissal by a Labour Tribunal.
In conclusion, I hope that the change to our lives which have been forced upon us by COVID-19 will be embraced by employers and employees alike and that they can grow to love their fate and see it as an opportunity to make improvements.