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Extension of the Furlough Scheme
Katy Cracknell • November 1, 2020
Last night was one of the strangest of the year (and that’s saying something for 2020!) With rumours swelling throughout the day we all waited with bated breath as Boris Johnson announced another national lock down along with changes to the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) which was due to be replaced today by the Job Support Scheme (JSS)
With employers and employees alike facing a Monday morning of chaos and employers making last minute changes to how they manage their workforce we’ve summarised the key points below.
What will the CJRS contribution levels be from 1st November 2020?
The contributions level will mirror those available under the CJRS in August. Therefore, the government will pay 80% of wages up to a cap of £2,500. Employers will pay employer National Insurance Contributions (NICs) and pension contributions only for the hours the employee does not work making the scheme much more viable for businesses.
Will the scheme rules remain unchanged?
Yes – the extended period of the Job Retention Scheme will operate as the previous scheme did, with businesses being paid upfront to cover wages costs. However, please note that the Government have stated that there will be a short period where they are making changes to the legal terms of the scheme and making updates to the system and businesses will be paid in arrears for that period.
Will flexible furlough be allowed?
Yes - as with the most recent scheme flexible furloughing will be allowed in addition to full-time furloughing.
What is the claim period?
When claiming for furloughed hours, employers will need to report and claim for a minimum period of 7 consecutive calendar days. This means that your working patterns should be based on a 7-day period.
Which businesses are eligible for Flexible Furlough?
All employers regardless of size will be eligible. The government expects that publicly funded organisations will not use the scheme, but partially publicly funded organisations may be eligible where their private revenues have been disrupted.
Which employees are eligible for Flexible Furlough?
To be eligible to be claimed for under this extension, employees must be on an employer’s PAYE payroll by 23:59 30th October 2020. This means that you can claim for any employees that you have hired since March who would not have been eligible previously.
Employees can be on any type of contract and employers will be able to agree any working arrangements with employees.
Can I top up an employee’s wages?
Yes - as with the current scheme, employers are still able to choose to top up employee wages above the scheme grant at their own expense.
What do I do if I have already written to employees to confirm that they will be placed on the Job Support scheme?
You should now contact employees ASAP to confirm the new arrangements considering what working arrangements are going to work best for your own business.
Will the Job Support Scheme come into effect from 3rd December?
At this point we assume that it will but so much will depend on the next 4 weeks and the impact that this has. Keep checking back with us for regular updates and we’ll update you as soon as we have further information.
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