How to manage furlough and holiday accrual at Christmas

Blake Morgan employment lawyer Helena Rosenstein examines how to manage furlough and holiday accrual at Christmas in an article first published in People Management on 14 December.

The current Coronavirus Job Retention (CJRS) Scheme (furlough) Government contribution could seem attractive to employers that might be slowing or shutting down over the festive period, making it tempting to place some or all of their workers on temporary furlough for that time so that they can recover 80 per cent of the holiday costs. The guidance makes it clear that workers continue to accrue holiday in the normal way and that they can take holiday while on furlough without interrupting that furlough period. Having said that, holiday must be paid at the worker’s pre-furlough rate and so will incur some cost to the employer, which cannot be claimed for.

However the CJRS (furlough) guidance not only clarifies that a person may not be placed on furlough just to take holiday, but it has just been updated to clarify that employees must not be placed on furlough just because an employer usually does less business over the festive period.

Helena Rosenstein explores what employers can and can’t do if their business slows or shuts down over the festive season.

Read the complete article on how to manage furlough and holiday accrual at Christmas here.