Please note the following guidance is for England only, different rules/guidance apply in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales, if you need help with the guidance in these countries please contact us.
The Key Points
Everyone has been ordered to stay at home and work from home unless they absolutely cannot do so.
Employers should therefore do everything possible to facilitate homeworking.
All non-essential retail is to close (a list of essential retail can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/further-businesses-and-premises-to-close/closingcertain-businesses-and-venues-in-england)
All schools are closed until after the February 2021 half-term, except for vulnerable children and the children of Key Workers, although nurseries are open. Restaurants and pubs can offer takeaway food but not alcohol.
Furlough
Which employees are eligible for the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme Grant/SSP Rebate?
- As you will be aware, the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme was extended to 30th April 2021. To be eligible to claim the grant towards the cost of their pay, the employee must have been registered on HMRC’s RTI in the period from 20th March to 30th October 2020. Therefore, must have been employed, on the payroll at this date.
- Any employee not on the October payroll can be furloughed but you will not be able to claim the grant for their pay from HMRC.
- You can claim back from both the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and the SSP rebate scheme for the same employee but not for the same period of time. When an employee is on furlough, you can only reclaim expenditure through the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, and not the SSP rebate scheme. If a non-furloughed employee becomes ill due to coronavirus, needs to self-isolate or shield, then you might qualify for the SSP rebate scheme, where you can claim up to two weeks of SSP per employee.
When can I furlough someone?
There are a number of reasons why you can or should furlough an eligible employee:
- There is insufficient work for them to do
- They are unable to work from home and you do not want or cannot accommodate them in the workplace
- They have childcare issues – with schools closed this is likely to be a serious issue for many parents enlightenHR providing peace of mind
- They are shielding (clinically extremely vulnerable, or at the highest risk of severe illness from coronavirus) – the Government has said anyone who shielded in March so do so again. Letters are on the way, but our advice is not to wait for them to receive the letter if they were told to shield in March they should do so again now • The guidance states “Short term illness/self-isolation should not be a consideration in deciding whether to furlough an employee. If, however, employers want to furlough employees for business reasons and they are currently off sick, they are eligible to do so, as with other employees. In these cases, the employee should no longer receive sick pay and would be classified as a furloughed employee”.
How do I furlough someone?
- You must talk to them about being furloughed and the reasons why
- You must have a written furlough agreement in place with them (to see our template for this please contact us about joining our Advice Line service)
- In order to reduce their salary to the furlough leave rate of 80% of salary capped at £2,500 per month, you must obtain written consent (through the furlough agreement) to vary their contract of employment
What about self-isolation?
Employees who have had a positive test or been contacted by Test and Trace?
- There is a requirement to self-isolate when either of these events occur
- Employees with a positive test must self-isolate for 10 days from the date of the when the symptoms started or, if no symptoms, the date of the test. If symptoms persist continue to self-isolate
- If someone in a support bubble has symptoms or has tested positive and the employee has been in close contact with them in the 48-hours prior to symptoms starting or since symptoms started • If someone in a household exhibits symptoms, or has a positive test, other members of the household must self-isolate for 10 days
Full details are available here https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/self-isolationand-treatment/how-long-to-self-isolate/
What about payment during self-isolation or if the employee has COVID-19?
Employees are entitled to Statutory Sick Pay if they are self-isolating. They should send you proof of the requirement to self-isolate e.g.
- An NHS isolation note (https://111.nhs.uk/isolation-note/)
- Notification from Test and Trace
And finally………………the vaccine, we will be providing guidance and policies relating to vaccinations in an update to follow shortly.
Our Support and Advice
Please do talk to us if we can help in any way, we are here to support you.
Guidance and Support
We are constantly updating and adding to our Coronavirus Dropbox. This is available for those subscribed to our Advice Line service.
Please note, this briefing is accurate at the time of writing and intended as guidance, it is subject to change as the COVID-19 and Government advice changes; it is not intended to replace advice so please do call us if you have any queries.
