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Should employers be paying toward your bills when working from home?

  • If you're working from home, should your employer be paying for your heating and electricity? Are there other costs they should be covering?

    The option to work from home used to be considered a rare perk that most jobs simply wouldn't offer, but the pandemic has thrust millions of us into the world of remote work. Over six months later, it's now looking like remote or partially remote work is set to be the standard for many companies in the foreseeable future and businesses are starting to see the benefits of it.

    As we head into winter and people's home heating bills are starting to rise, the big question that's making the rounds currently is: Should your employer be contributing toward your electricity and heating bills? A recent examination of the issue by Wired UK's Alex Christian helps highlight the extent of the issue, with an estimated £2bn nation-wide increase in home utility bills this winter due to working from home.

    The average full-time remote worker is expected to see around an 18% rise in household energy bills, which could translate to over £700 per year that will come out of their own pocket. As this cost is incurred directly in the performance of your work, it's reasonable to conclude that your employer should cover the difference.

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    Self-employed workers are able to claim part of their home utility bills to as a work expense to reduce their total income for tax purposes, but things aren't so simple for regular employees working from home. It's up to individual businesses to decide whether to offer any homeworking expenses at all, and they can only provide up to £6/month tax-free before it counts as a taxable benefit.

    Another complicating factor is that most employers are still paying for that empty office space, and some businesses are now suddenly in financial difficulty due to the pandemic. The NI Executive has issued a few small grants to rates-paying businesses to help them with the cost of empty offices, but it doesn't look like many of us will be going back to those offices any time soon.

    Heating and lighting aren't the only cost changes with working from home, either. People who previously commutted to work by company car or claimed back their milage may be saving time by not driving to the office, but those travel benefits were a perk of the job that are now sitting unused. Other perks such as any food or coffee normally provided by the workplace are also now absent.

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    Adequate technology provision is equally important -- some people being asked to work from home don't have adequate computer setups, and many won't have a home office space as they haven't needed one until now. Poor posture from inadequate seating and desk setups are already affecting Northern Ireland worker health, and employers are responsible for providing safe equipment for you to use.

    If you're working from home and find that your bills have gone up or your home working setup isn't good enough (a laptop on the kitchen table doesn't cut it!), reach out to your employer and see what they can do. As we come into winter, it will be more important than ever.

     

    About the author

    Brendan is a Sync NI writer with a special interest in the gaming sector, programming, emerging technology, and physics. To connect with Brendan, feel free to send him an email or follow him on Twitter.

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