UK unions strive for elastic schedule for football fans during 2018 World Cup

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Britain's Trade Union Congress (TUC) has appealed to the country's companies to institute an elastic working schedule so that their employees will be able to watch games of the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia, reported the Daily Mirror on Wednesday.

TUC suggested that employees could work from home or go to the company earlier or later than usual to finish watching the matches. The companies could also set up a television in the offices so people can enjoy the games at work. TUC believes that an elastic schedule would serve the interests of both employers and employees.

Trade Union Congress suggested that companies could put televisions in the office so their employees could watch the FIFA World Cup at work. /VCG Photo

Frances O'grady, General secretary of the TUC, also a fan of England and Arsenal, said in an interview that a major football event like the FIFA World Cup could contribute a lot to building sound employer-employee relations considering millions of fans would want to cheer for their national team.

O'grady believes that allowing fans to enjoy the World Cup matches or their children's sports meets at school before making up time for work in an elastic way would make them happier and more efficient back at the company.

England will meet their first rival, Tunisia in Group G on June 18. /VCG photo

Rosena Allin-Khan, Labor's shadow sports minister said his party agreed with TUC that companies should allow their football fan employees to have a more elastic schedule during the World Cup so they can support their national team.

This is not the first time that British Unions have fought for employees to watch World Cup games. In 2006, the country's second-largest trade union Amicus even posted an article on their website to teach corporate employees how to pretend to be sick so that they could watch the FIFA World Cup in Germany.