As law firms in the U.S. and U.K. debate the relative merits of mask mandates, vaccine passes, and whether to require all staff to come back to the office, European firms have a different, and perhaps more delicate set of decisions to make, lawyers on the continent told Law.com International.

While official guidance to employers varies from country to country, law firms in Europe—in common with most private-sector employers—can easily find themselves caught between their legal obligation to protect employee health and safety, and the legal prohibition against infringing employees’ right to privacy by asking whether they have been vaccinated.