The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) continues to dominate our thoughts at the moment, as many businesses begin to move from ‘full lockdown’ towards something a little closer to normality. If you need to know more, then maybe it’s time you read the latest Treasury Direction.

A brief reminder

Last month, we reported on the fact that the CJRS effectively closed its doors to new entrants on 10 June 2020. Equally importantly, since 1 July 2020, employers have been able to begin bringing furloughed employees back to work on a part-time basis if they wish. In effect, employees can work as normal for some of the week and then be furloughed for the rest of the week, with the Government continuing to meet a proportion of the employee’s wages for that part of the week spent on furlough. 

We previously pointed out that we were awaiting full details of precisely how the new ‘flexible’ furlough scheme will operate over the coming months. Well, now HM Treasury has issued a new Treasury Direction setting out, in detail, the way in which the updated (and more flexible) CJRS will operate. Here’s a link to the full document, which runs to more than 30 pages:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/treasury-direction-made-under-sections-71-and-76-of-the-coronavirus-act-2020

If you can bring yourself to read the document, then it contains a lot of guidance on how the CJRS can be used within your business. However, if you can’t quite pluck up the courage to dive in and would prefer us to do the heavy lifting, please let us know. We have already spent time drafting up the necessary paperwork to allow businesses to implement flexible furlough arrangements with their staff. 

Don’t get caught out

By the end of May, HMRC claimed that it had received almost 1,900 reports of allegedly fraudulent use of the furlough scheme. With this in mind, understanding the scheme and getting the right documents in place remains incredibly important if you want to make a valid claim under the CJRS and stay on the right side of the law.

If you need specific advice and guidance on using the CJRS within your business, please contact James Willis (Head of Employment Law) on 07917 712257.