Furlough Ending; what to do next?

Furlough is a government scheme that all people have come to terms with in the past year. With the ongoing coronavirus epidemic, many found themselves unable to be at the workplace. With this scheme, furloughed employees were able to make money while not being at work. But, as the coronavirus epidemic dies down, the furlough scheme has slowly started to be reduced. Here’s what’s furlough has done, and how it could lead to redundancy.

What is furlough & furlough scheme end date?

In the past year, furlough has gone through many changes. In January furlough was at its peak, with 5.1 million people being on the scheme – but this has dropped significantly at the end of June to only 1.9 million. Many furloughed employees found themselves being brought back into work as lockdown restrictions were eased. As of the end of June, only 28% of employers have staff on Furlough.

Though as furlough continues it becomes clearer that the scheme is coming to an end. If this wasn’t already clear by the dwindling number of people on the scheme, the government’s has an official date that doesn’t look like it will change. Many find themselves wondering when the furlough scheme’s end date is. Well, the furlough scheme’s end date is Thursday the 30th of September 2021, only 1 month away, and this could mean an increase in redundancy.

Furlough ending – what it could mean

Furlough has, undoubtedly, been of great benefit to many workers in terms of redundancy. Though the scheme has cost the government 66 billion pounds, it has helped to keep unemployment at 1 in 20. It was predicted to rise to 1 in 10 due to the pandemic, meaning this is a huge success. But, with furlough ending, it is expected that there could be a rise in redundancy.

With furlough ending, it will be up to employers whether to take employees back or to make them redundant. Furloughed employees could very well lose their jobs. This will, no doubt, lead to a large increase in redundancy and unemployment in the UK. Many forecasters, such as the Bank of England, expect there to be at least a small increase in unemployment in the UK. This means furlough ending could lead to a great change in businesses.

How Happie Group can help

Happie Group’s team will provide exceptional and professional payroll services, which are excellent for a potential shift in the number of worker’s you have. This is all done with a 'get it right first-time' attitude. If you are interested and want to find more information about this, visit our page. If you enjoyed this blog, we have plenty more for you to read!