Friday’s announcement by Chancellor Rishi Sunak confirming how employers will have to start sharing the cost of the furlough scheme starts to bring matters into a sharp focus.

From August, employers must pay pension contributions and NI, rising to 10% of salary in September and 20% In October.

Workers will also be allowed to work part-time in July with employers paying 100% of wages.

This is likely to mean some tough decisions for UK employers who will need to consider the following options to their businesses operating models:

• Agree reduced working hours with some or all staff
  

• Furlough staff for a further period, at the new grant rate until end of October
  

• Furlough staff for a further period supplementing the grant at the company's expense
  

• Before considering redundancies, there are other strategies to think about, including:--  natural wastage, - pause on recruitment,- stopping or reducing overtime, - offering early retirement (to volunteers), - retraining or redeployment, - sabbaticals and secondments, - pay freezes, - short-time working and other alternatives to redundancy.
  

• As a last resort, consider redundancies and remember to follow the guidelines for any staff that have been furloughed.

In preparing to bring staff back to work, employers will have to realise that they may be managing different employee groups in very different places.  For example, a business may have some individuals who have continued to work throughout the pandemic if they have been involved with or overseeing critical work. 

Others may have continued to work from home, juggling the pressures of childcare or home-schooling while others have been furloughed.

It is important therefore that all employees feel they are returning to work on an even footing to a supportive and caring environment.  Even if this is positioned appropriately, there is every possibility that some employees may not want to return to work and it will be important to explore any underlying issues around this. 

A detailed flow-chart of how to manage individuals who may be reluctant to return to work is available on our free tip sheet - My Employee Doesn't Want to Return to Work!

Particular attention needs to be paid to staff who have particular requirements (e.g. health issues, disability, childcare or other care responsibilities).  They may not be in a position to return as quickly to ‘normal’ working, especially if their children are not in the years returning to school.

Be aware that some employees who had a reasonable adjustment before may need a different one on their return to a workplace. Similarly, many individuals who didn’t previously have a mental health condition may have experienced mental health challenges and need to discuss changes to help them overcome any barriers and fulfil their role.

Not everyone will be in the same boat and the focus should be on a safe return to the workplace.  Employee wellbeing will be key and If you can, go the extra mile and engage some eternal support or train up some mental health first raiders.  Above all, ensure you acknowledge those individuals who have gone above and beyond.

Please reach out to  us for more help and support if you need to make any key changes to your team or are struggling to get people back to the workplace.

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