Flexible Furlough
Things are potentially about to become a lot more complicated for furlough pay, so understanding your options and requirements is more important than ever. From 1 July 2020 furloughed employees can work on a flexible, part time basis for their employer (known as flexible furlough). The employer can claim under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme for the hours that the employee does not work.
Employers and employees who want to use the benefits of flexible furlough will need to bear in mind the following points:
• Employers must agree with the employee to make use of flexible furlough and must have a new written agreement that confirms the new furlough arrangement. We are happy to provide such agreements, which will need to be different to the agreement entered into when furlough first became available
• Employers cannot flexibly furlough employees who have not been furloughed before. Employers can furlough an employee only if they have previously been furloughed before 10th June 2020 for a minimum period of 3 weeks, and had been furloughed at some time between 1st March 2020 and 30th June 2020
• Employers must pay an employee in full for the time they work and must pay them at least 80% of their wages (to a maximum of £2,500/month). The amount that employers can claim under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme will gradually reduce from 1st August 2020
• A flexible furlough agreement can last any amount of time, but each claim period must cover at least one week
We have a dedicated team of experts on hand ready to help you understand your options and provide help and guidance on flexible furlough, including the complex calculations involved.