What are the rules regarding the UK furlough extension? What changes need to be made to staff furlough letters and can employees still work in the office? In this article, Emphasis HR & Training gives you all the answers.
UK furlough extension
Following on from the government’s announcement of a second nationwide lockdown in England, the Chancellor has today made another major announcement concerning the extended furlough scheme. The extension, which was set to end on 2 December 2020, will now continue until March 2020. The aim is to support employers beyond November in light of the economic toll of England’s month-long national lockdown.
The extended furlough scheme will provide the same level of support to employers as in July 2020 with some reviews to take place in January. Here is a brief overview of the revised UK furlough extension:
- the government will provide 80% of furloughed workers’ wages (capped at £2,500/month)
- employers are required to pay national insurance and pension contributions
- scheme will be reviewed in January to decide whether the economic situation has improved enough to start asking employers for contributions
- it is at the employer’s discretion if they wish to top up an employee’s wages
- you can apply for the new furlough scheme even if you did not previously use it
- employees on any type of contract can receive furlough contributions as long as they were on your RTI payroll submission as at 30 October 2020
As with the initial UK furlough scheme, any changes to an individual’s working arrangements must be agreed with them in advance.
Read our article concerning redundancy notice period and the furlough scheme here >>
UK furlough extension letters
Given the last-minute decision to postpone the job support scheme in favour of the extended furlough scheme, many employers may have already written to their employees setting out the next steps following the end of furlough on 30 October. Employers will now need to ‘reverse’ that process if they wish to keep employees on the extended furlough scheme going forward.
Here are some examples of things you will need to produce when seeking employees’ agreement to full or flexible furlough under the lockdown extension scheme:
- full furlough letter – you will need to produce this to place an employee on full furlough, where they were either on flexible furlough already or working normally in the period immediately prior to the announcement of the lockdown extension scheme
- flexible furlough letter – to place an employee on flexible furlough, where they were either on full furlough or working normally in the period immediately prior to the announcement of the lockdown extension scheme
- short letter extending furlough arrangement – to agree with an employee who was already on full or flexible furlough immediately prior to the announcement of the lockdown extension scheme that their furlough arrangement will continue on the same terms as before, although with an option to amend working hours for those on flexible furlough
If you need any help in writing any of our suggested furlough letters, then please do speak to us.
Can employees continue to work in the office?
Similarly, to the national lockdown in the spring, the UK government has advised everyone who can work effectively from home to do so with the exception of public sector employees who work in ‘essential’ services, including education settings. The message is, stay at home to save lives.
If people are unable to work from home – for example, employees in construction and manufacturing – the government has said they should continue to travel to their workplaces as normal.
Read our quick guide on the flexible furlough scheme here >>
The UK government website states:
“To help contain the virus, everyone who can work effectively from home must do so. Where people cannot do so – including, but not limited to, people who work in critical national infrastructure, construction, or manufacturing – they should continue to travel to their workplace. This is essential to keeping the country operating and supporting sectors and employers.
Public sector employees working in essential services, including childcare or education, should continue to go into work.
Where it is necessary to work in other people’s homes – for example, for nannies, cleaners or tradespeople – you can do so.”
Source: www.gov.uk
Employers must carry out a risk assessment to ensure the workplace meets government guidelines and do everything they reasonably can to make the workplace ‘COVID-secure’.
Up-to-date guidance on what employers need to do to make workplaces ‘COVID-secure’ can be found here>>
Further resources:
Unlimited telephone and email advice
Courageous Conversations & other webinars
We will aim to keep you updated of developments as and when further guidance becomes available. In the meantime if you are in need of help navigating the current climate and all things HR, please give us a no-obligation call on 01794 874232 or send an email to: hello@emphasis.uk.com.
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