The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) which has supported many employers since March 2020, will come to an end on 30 September 2021.
Considerations to prepare for the CJRS end
CJRS claims for September must be submitted to HM Revenue & Customs by 14 October 2021 and any amendments must be made by 28 October 2021.
For July 2021, the Government’s contribution to furlough wages was reduced to 70%, and further reduced to 60% for August 2021 and September 2021, with the employer having to top up wages to at least 80% for the hours the employees were furloughed.
These additional costs, and the lack of financial support from 1 October 2021, will mean some tough decisions having to be made by employers on staffing.
If redundancy is the answer, ensure that you speak to your HR and Payroll representatives to ensure you get ‘your ducks in a row’. Here are some key points to consider:
- Collective consultation if you are making 20 or more redundancies at the same time.
- Statutory redundancy pay is based on the employee’s age, length of service and is currently capped at £544 per week. The redundancy cost will therefore vary per employee, but the employee must not be unfairly selected for redundancy.
- Furlough cannot be used to pay notice and the employee will need to be paid their full wages for any notice period.
- As with notice pay, furlough cannot be used to pay redundancy pay.
- Employees will have accrued holiday pay throughout furlough and right up to the date of leaving. Holiday pay is payable based on the employee’s full wages.
- When comparing accrued holiday against holiday pay already paid, consider that the employee may have been overpaid holiday pay. Does their contract of employment have the sufficient clause in it to allow you to recover this overpayment from their final wage?
- With sufficient notice, holiday can be used and paid during furlough, but only for days up to and including 30 September 2021, and any holiday pay must be topped-up to 100%.
- The Tax, NIC and Pension treatment for holiday pay, notice pay and redundancy pay.
Useful Links
Making staff redundant: https://www.gov.uk/staff-redundant
Redundancy pay calculator: https://www.gov.uk/calculate-employee-redundancy-pay
Robson Laidler understand that the administration of CJRS claims can stressful and managing payroll can be a minefield.
If you would like payroll support our dedicated payroll team would love you to get in touch, by emailing us: payrollteam@robson-laidler.co.uk or contact us via our website.