Despite the fact it is not operational yet, the Government has just announced details for an extension to the Job Support Scheme (JSS) to help cope with further challenges caused by Covid.
From 1 November 2020, the JSS will provide help in the form of the Government paying 1/3rd of any wages shortfall when an employee is on reduced hours. Scheme rules mean the employee has to work and be paid for 33% of their normal (pre-furlough) hours.
Changes are now planned which will mean any business which has to close their premises due to local or national coronavirus restrictions will get 2/3rds of salary paid by the Government (with a £2,100 per month maximum) rather than 1/3rd. Employers will only have to cover NIC’s and pension contributions. To qualify, employees a business makes a claim for must be off work for a minimum of 7 consecutive days.
As with the rest of JSS, this starts on 1 November 2020 and runs for 6 months. Claims are to be made via an HMRC portal and that should be available from early December.
While it is to be hoped that this is not required by many businesses and that restrictions are limited, it does provide some additional assistance to help those businesses survive and retain employees.
If you have any questions about these changes or about the ongoing challenges of lockdown, why not sign up for our Employment Law Update webinar this Wednesday when this will be discussed in far more detail. For more information or to book you place, click here.
If you have any questions on any of the issues mentioned in the above article, please contact Russell Eadie.