The Chancellor has today (8 July 2020) announced that a Job Retention Bonus Scheme is to be introduced for employers, to reward and incentivise them to retain staff who are currently furloughed.
Under the scheme, employers will be paid £1,000 per employee who is brought back from furlough and leave and kept continuously employed by them until January 2021.
In order to get the bonus, employees must be paid at least £520.00 on average in each month from November 2020, when the furlough scheme finishes, until the end of January 2021. Payments will be made from February 2021.
The bonus was announced during an emergency statement in the House of Commons with the Chancellor Rishi Sunak assuring businesses ‘if you stand by your workers, we will stand by you.’
He also unveiled a new ‘kickstart’ scheme to reward businesses who create new jobs for young people (aged 16-24) by paying their wages, at national minimum wage rates, for six months.
Further details about both schemes are expected to be announced by the end of the month. In the meantime, details on the government’s Plan for Jobs can be found on the GOV.UK website.
For more information and to find out how we can help you, please contact our Employment Team on 0345 646 0406 or fill in our online enquiry form and a member of our Team will be in touch.