Masks indoors, plastic screens, table service and a slow return to work: Why workplaces after Freedom Day will still look remarkably like they do today as government finally releases guidance for bosses that's barely changed

 Businesses should consider keeping staff wearing masks indoors even after lockdown ends, according to new government Covid guidance released tonight.

 

Businesses should consider keeping staff wearing masks indoors even after lockdown ends, according to new government Covid guidance released tonight.

Documents released online just days before the July 19 unlocking also suggest workplaces keep social distancing measures like plastic screens and back-to-back desks in a bid to placate nervous workers.

They appear to suggest firms introduce 'fixed teams or partnering' to reduce the threat from coronavirus spreading through their workforce, - which has echoes of Covid bubbles in place in this year's full lockdown.

Table service in pubs and widespread working from home should also continue, the guidance suggests. 

The guidance appears likely to set the scene for furious battles between employees and their staff in the days and weeks ahead about how often they can return to their primary workplace and how it should be set up. 

It tells bosses: 'You should discuss a return to the workplace with workers, and trade unions to make working arrangements that meet both business and individual needs.

'Employers and others must continue to follow statutory health and safety requirements, conduct a risk assessment, and take reasonable steps to manage risks in their workplace or setting.' 

Unions and employers hit out at the guidance with a warning that it is a 'recipe for chaos'. DAILY MAIL.