Coronavirus: Changes to Furlough Scheme Announced

Today (29 May), Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced changes to the Government's Coronavirus Job Retention - or furlough - scheme.

Currently, employers that cannot afford to keep staff can furlough their employees, whose wages will be paid by the government at an 80% rate up to £2.5k.

From August 1, employers will be asked to pay the National Insurance and Pension Contributions (accounting for roughly 5% of wages) for furloughed employees.

From September, the government will pay 70% of wages, asking employers to contribute 10%, still meaning employees get 80% of their pre-furlough salaries.

From October the government will pay 60%, with employers paying 20%.

The scheme will then end in October

Also, from July 1, employers will be able to bring back staff on a part-time basis, with employers paying wages of the time the employee is working, and the furlough scheme will be in force for the time the employee is not working.

The scheme will also be closed to new applications from June 10, meaning any staff that organisations think they may need to furlough between now and October will need to be on the scheme by June 10.

Rishi Sunak said:

The full announcement can be accessed here, and more details will follow in the coming days.