Latest measures to support jobs
Following the Prime Minister’s announcement that England would enter a national lockdown from 5 November 2020 to 2 December 2020, the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, which was due to come to an end on 31 October 2020, has been extended for a further five months and will continue to be available until the 31 March 2021. As a result, the Job Support Scheme, which was due to replace the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme from 1 November 2020, has been put on hold.
Extended scheme
Under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, as extended, furloughed employees will receive 80% of their pay, capped at £2,500 a month. Employees who are flexibly furloughed will receive 80% of their pay for their furloughed hours subject to the cap.
The grant will be set at 80% of the employee’s pay for their furloughed hours, subject to the cap of £2,500 for the month. The full amount of the grant must be paid over the to employee. Unlike September and October, the employer will not be required to top up the grant; however, employers will have to pay the employer’s National Insurance on the grant, and also any employer pension contributions due under auto-enrolment.
Eligibility
To be eligible for a grant under the scheme, the employee must have been on the employer’s payroll at 23.59 on 30 October 2020 and an RTI submission made to HMRC in respect of the employee. Employees who were on the payroll at 23 September 2020 and in respect of whom an RTI submission was made, but who stopped working for the employer after this date or who were made redundant, can also benefit from the scheme if their employer re-employs them.
In other news…
It was also confirmed that the Job Retention Bonus will no longer be paid in February 2021, as CJRS will be available at that time. An alternative retention incentive will be put in place at the appropriate time.
Already announced:
- Grants of up to £3,000 per month for businesses which are closed worth more than £1 billion every month
- £1.1 billion is being given to Local Authorities, distributed on the basis of £20 per head, for one-off payments to enable them to support businesses more broadly
- Plans to extend existing government-backed loan schemes and the Future Fund to the end of January, and an ability to top-up Bounce Back Loans
- An extension to the mortgage payment holiday for homeowners
- Up to £500 million of funding for councils to support the local public health response.
