Coronavirus: UK furlough scheme extended by 1 month to end of June / furlough holiday rights clarified

The UK government announced this afternoon that it is extending the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (‘CJRS’) by a month to the end of June. The announcement is welcome news for many employers who for business planning purposes were considering whether they could continue to employ staff currently on furlough if the CJRS finished on the original 31 May date.

In addition, the government has finally provided guidance on holiday rights during furlough. The guidance gives welcome confirmation that employees continue to accrue holiday during furlough. Employees may also take holiday whilst on furlough, with any statutory holiday being paid at their usual holiday pay rate in accordance with the Working Time Regulations. Employers will be obliged to pay the additional amounts over the grant.

BCLP has assembled a COVID-19 Employment & Labor taskforce to assist clients with employment law issues across various jurisdictions. You can contact the taskforce at: COVID-19HRLabour&EmploymentIssues@bclplaw.com.