Follow England at your peril...
Don't expect your boss to be understanding if you jet off to Germany 2006 without warning

FOOTIE fans thinking of sneaking away to watch England's world cup matches on TV or in person may have to think again, employment lawyers are warning.

England finished at the top of Group 6 in the world cup qualifying rounds, narrowly beating Poland. But anyone following their progress this summer in the world cup finals in Germany had better make sure they've had a word with the boss first.

England could come out on top of Group B in the preliminary rounds against Paraguay, Trinidad and Sweden - but employees are certain to come out bottom of the league if they don't clear their holiday plans first.

With the world cup kicking off in May, many employees will be doing their upmost to watch the key games, spelling headaches for employers.

Peter Mooney, Head of Consultancy at Employment Law Advisory Services (ELAS) explains: "During the last world cup in 2002 we had quite a lot of calls from clients complaining about their staff taking time of without permission. We also had calls from companies who said too many people were requesting the same holiday dates."

"The answer for employers is, as with everything in life, careful planning. They should issue advice in advance to their staff on what the correct parameters are, and making it clear that unauthorised absence will be punished under the disciplinary procedures. That doesn't mean they can't be flexible. They should say that, where possible, requests for leave on the dates England are playing would be met and say that, for instance, time could be made up later," Mooney advises.

"In 2002 some employers went overboard and out widescreen tv in their staff canteens - but putting up notices and sending memos warning of the consequences of unauthorised access means everyone knows the boundaries, and is a useful first step."

Mooney says that even wide-spread absenteeism can be tackled effectively by employers.

"If a business finds that, despite warnings, there are still quite a lot if unauthorised absences, then applying the disciplinary procedures to each and every case will take time, but it will get the message across.

"If employers are lax and take the view that the world cup is just once in every four year, then their staff will learn to get away with it - they'll stretch the boundaries."

For more employment law advice about tracking absences please contact ELAS to discuss how our HR software can help you.