Can employees be placed on furlough during their notice periods?
Employers can serve employees with notice and access the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) to recover some of their notice pay.
There has been some confusion over this issue at various stages since the CJRS was introduced. Initially, it was not very clear and then a more recent Treasury Direction (25th June 2020) which included wording about an employee’s employment “continuing” was interpreted by some to mean that employers, who had accessed the scheme in respect of notice pay, would have to repay it. This is not our understanding and moreover, the Department for BEIS has also confirmed this in writing.
However, it should be noted that CJRS claims cannot be made in respect of payments in lieu of notice or redundancy payments and that an employer will likely be obliged to top an employee’s notice pay up to the full contractual amount.
The level of support under the CJRS will be gradually reduced from 1st August (see blog) and this will impact the contribution employers can get for notice pay.
In addition, as per our previous blog, where an employer proposes to make more than 20 employees redundant within a 90 day period, they may need to comply with collective consultation requirements before notice can be given.
How Nelsons can help
Laura Kearsley is a Partner in our expert Employment Law team.
For further information on the CJRS, furlough leave, notice periods or any related subjects, please contact Laura or another member of the team in Derby, Leicester or Nottingham on 0800 024 1976 or via our online form.