It’s coming home … but is your workforce staying home too?
With the World Cup 2026 kicking off today, for some there will be lots to celebrate. Large sporting events such as this can be a great opportunity to bring people together and this should not be overlooked, but HR professionals up and down the country are probably preparing themselves for some creative ‘sickies’, last-minute holiday requests and perhaps a bleary-eyed office floor given the late kick off times. Getting ahead of this and making expectations clear is the best way to try to minimise disruption to your business. It would be sensible to:
Make it clear that staff are required to work as usual, otherwise other arrangements have been agreed
Where feasible, consider flexible start and finish times
Consider allowing last minute annual leave requests (making it clear that you reserve the right to refuse requests particularly in too many people are already off, this is a temporary arrangement and normal booking arrangements will resume following this period). You must ensure all requests are dealt with a fairly.
Remind staff that sickness absence reporting still applies and any unauthorised absence, lateness or patterns of absence may be investigated and disciplinary action taken
If England reach the final, businesses could celebrate (or commiserate!) the outcome with breakfast rolls provided for staff on the Monday morning
In taking a flexible approach and not imposing strict rules, it will hopefully allow for a happier but still productive workforce.
It is of course important to remind staff of expectations in relation to conduct. Whilst it’s great for people to have pride in the team they support, staff must remain respectful to others. They must also not attend work under the influence of alcohol. It might be a sensible time to point staff to the staff handbook to remind themselves of these expectations.
In summary, take a carrot and stick approach to this period; encourage staff to enjoy this time and be flexible where you can, but make clear the consequences of taking advantage of this flexibility.