Furlough

The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) will now run until the end of March, with employees receiving 80% of their current salary for hours not worked.

There are currently no employer contribution to wages for hours not worked. Employers will only be asked to cover National Insurance and employer pension contributions for hours not worked. The CJRS extension will be reviewed in January.

Employers do not need to have used the CJRS previously.

Employers across the UK can claim, whether their businesses are open or closed.

All other previous CJRS eligibility requirements also apply.

Employers can claim for employees who were employed and on their PAYE payroll on 30 October 2020. Employers will have flexibility to use the scheme for employees for any amount of time or shift pattern, furloughing employees on either a full-time or part-time basis, and will be able to vary the hours worked in agreement with the employee.

Employees can be furloughed where they are unable to work because they are shielding or have caring responsibilities resulting from coronavirus.

Employees that were employed and on the payroll on 23 September 2020 who were made redundant or stopped working for their employer afterwards can be re-employed and claimed for.

Similarly, an employee who was on a fixed term contract, on payroll on 23 September, and that contract expired after 23 September can be re-employed and claimed for, provided that the other eligibility criteria are met.

HMRC will publish details of employers who make claims under the extended CJRS scheme, starting from December. Full details will be announced next week.

Read more details on furlough here.

Jobs Retention Bonus

The Jobs Retention Bonus (JRB) will now not be paid in February. The government said it will announce a retention incentive at the appropriate time.

Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS)

The Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) will be increased, with the third grant covering November to January calculated at 80% of average trading profits, up to a maximum of £7,500. This is an increase from 55% to 80% of average profits.

Further support announced today includes:

• £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.

UKFT is in constant dialogue with the government and is outlining the latest support available for UK fashion and textile businesses on our website. We will update this page as new guidance becomes available or the situation changes.

UKFT CORONAVIRUS GUIDANCE