Flexible Furloughing from 1st July
16 June 2020
The updated CJRS will allow employers to bring furloughed employees back to work part-time from 1st July.
We would advise you to read the detailed guidance on the updated Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) which is now available live on GOV.UK. This guidance covers:
- Changes to the CJRS scheme and key dates that you need to be aware of
- How to claim if you bring people back part-time
- An online calculator is available to help you work out how much you can claim
- Instructive webinars are available to book online
Note that furlough periods that straddle 1st July are treated as ending on 30th June 2020 and then restart under the new scheme on 1st July. Two separate claims will be needed for such straddling furloughs, with furlough days up to 30th June 2020 to be included in the June claim.
Who can be in a claim from 1st July?
An employee can only be included in the claim from the 1st July if they had been furloughed for a minimum of 21 days at any point between 1st March 2020 to 30th June 2020. If an employee had been furloughed for three weeks in April, but then returned to work, s/he can be included in a claim from 1st July.
To qualify for a claim for ‘flexible furlough’ under the new CJRS, employees must have been furloughed for at least 21 days.
You can still keep employees on full furlough if needed.
Calculating for flexible furloughing
From 1st July 2020, employees can work and be furloughed in the same pay period. For employers who want to take advantage of this flexibility they will have to calculate all of the following for the employee:
- his or her ‘usual hours’ (contracted hours or specific formula for zero hours or variably paid workers)
- actual hours worked
- furloughed hours worked
To calculate an employee’s furloughed hours, deduct the actual hours worked from the usual hours, always rounding up to the next whole number of hours. Employers will be expected to report the worked hours and the usual hours in the CJRS claims portal.
Since April 2019, employers in Great Britain have had to show the number of hours worked on payslips if pay varies based on hours worked. This requirement will apply to all employees who are flexibly furloughed from 1st July. Employers may choose to show furloughed hours as well for transparency.
The wage cap
The £2,500 wage cap continues to apply for July and August, pro-rated to the hours in the pay period that the employee is furloughed, with this apportionment based on calendar days. The employer’s NIC threshold and pension threshold will also be apportioned.
Please note: the rules will change again from 1st August when no pension costs or employer’s NIC will be reclaimable. In September and October, the amount of wages which can be claimed will also reduce from the current 80%.