The 1st of July saw the beginning of the wind down of the national Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme which has covered the pay of furloughed staff throughout the pandemic.
The government contribution reduced from 80% to 70%, leaving employers to top up the remaining 10% of wages for those staff still not working.
In August and September, this contribution falls again to 60% and then the scheme comes to a formal end on 30 September.
Employers – what to think about?
For employers now is the time to start revisiting staffing levels and potentially looking at the structure of the business going forward. Companies will need to assess the impact of the cost increases as a result of full payroll costs returning in October, and review this against current business performance in order to plan any changes needed to support this.
It’s possible you’ll need to consider some of the following:
Team restructuring
Streamlining and possible redundancies
Changes to working hours
Changes to commission schemes
Longer term changes to working patterns – home/office
The human element
All business change affects people and it’s vital not to overlook the human element when thinking about how you’re going to deal with some of these issues. Some furloughed staff may experience feelings of reluctance to return to the office, others may feel anxious about longer term company changes.
Managing change of course requires adherence to employment law and best practice HR, but should also be approached with kindness, patience and empathy for those people affected. Making sure your staff are kept updated regularly so they know what’s going on, using active listening and giving consistent feedback will benefit both management and their teams.
If you need advice on any of these areas, our experienced team can help. We can guide you on employment law and support you on the HR side of things too, making sure your plans are watertight and also get implemented in the right way too.
Contact us for more info.