Changes to the Furlough Scheme

From 1st May, there are to be a number of changes to how the Job Retention Scheme works. 

Eligibility for being furloughed

Currently, employees cannot be furloughed if they were not employed past 30th October 2020, and even then a PAYE Real Time Information (RTI) submission must have been made to HMRC between 20th March 2020 and 30th October 2020, notifying a payment of earnings for that employee.

This is to change. For pay periods that start on or after 1st May 2021, employees who were employed on 2nd March 2021 can be furloughed, provided the organisation has made a PAYE Real Time Information (RTI) submission to HMRC between 20th March 2020 and 2nd March 2021, notifying a payment of earnings for that employee. The shift in eligibility from 1st May 2021 onwards was confirmed in Government guidance on 3rd March 2021, presumably as a result of the extension of the JRS until the end of September 2021.

The knock-on impact of this is that organisations will be granted much more flexibility in furlough decisions in the future; they will be able to furlough those who were recruited between 31st October 2020 and 2nd March 2021, meaning the scope for furloughing staff is going to be wider.

Organisations will not have to have previously claimed for an employee before 2nd March 2021 to claim for periods from starting on or after 1st May 2021

Calculating claims for periods staring on or after 1st May 2021

Due to the change in eligibility highlighted above, the government is outlining updated guidance on how to calculate furlough pay.

It should be remembered that the government will still provide 80% of furloughed staff wages for the time they are not working in May and June 2021. They are not due to start reducing the amount they provide until 1st July 2021.

Claiming for staff previously made redundant

For periods beginning on or after 1st May 2021, organisations will no longer be able to furlough staff that were previously made redundant.

Furlough after TUPE

From 1st May 2021, organisations are able to furlough employees if they were included on a PAYE Real Time Information (RTI) submission to HMRC on or before 2nd March 2021.

Considering introducing Hybrid working?

As hybrid working continues to gather popularity, this article will be the first in a series exploring the pros and cons, how to implement it, and options for the companies that can’t.

What is hybrid working?

Hybrid working is where staff conduct a mixture of working from home and from the office. Whilst it is not a new concept, as the option to work from home through flexible working existed prior to the pandemic, it is something that has become much more popular in recent times. Staff that have successfully worked from home during the last 12 months may want to continue doing so going forward and respond poorly to a full-time return to the workplace. Hybrid working could therefore be a compromise for this, permitting staff to work form home whilst also maintaining a degree of office attendance.

Benefits of hybrid working

Guidance across Britain remains that staff should work from home if they can, however organisations may be expecting some push back from employees when they are asked to return to the workplace and indeed could already have seen this last year. As we emerge out of the pandemic, employees may be increasingly thinking about their long-term career goals, and flexibility in their jobs could be a key aspect of this. Hybrid working could therefore be a solution to this issue.

The increased flexibility with hybrid working could be well received by employees, helping them to better work towards a work-life balance, something that is becoming increasingly popular with a modern-day workforce. This could be crucial in maintaining morale and staff retention as we go forward, especially if employees are still anxious about a full-time return to the workplace.

It should also be remembered by organisations that if they do not explore hybrid working options, their competitors may be willing to do so, something that could deprive them of otherwise valuable members of staff.

Cons of hybrid working

Of course, hybrid working isn’t a perfect solution for all businesses, and indeed some may see more drawbacks than others. For example, some roles may be difficult to undertake from home, even on a part-time basis, and managers will need to take this into account. There is also the issue of staff feeling more isolated when working from home, although hybrid working may go towards mitigating this issue.

Staff may also be more difficult to manage remotely, with the potential encouragement for them to see the days they aren’t in the office as days where they need to work less hard. To this end, it will be important for management to monitor staff in these situations and be prepared to take further actions should there be issues in productivity, which we will explore in the next article.

It should be remembered that not all staff may want to go down the hybrid working route, and indeed may feel very demotivated by a move to do so.

Conclusion

In all, the introduction of hybrid working comes with varied pros and cons, but it is something that many organisations may increasingly be looking to introduce.