The University's Executive Board have outlined that the University will not at this time be utilising the extension to the Government's Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme between November 2020 and March 2021. If your work has been affected by the latest Government measures, please discuss this with your line manager in the first instance.
The University will continue to review and monitor the situation as more information becomes available and will continue to work with our recognised trade unions on any developments.
Introduction
The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) is a temporary scheme open to all UK employers from 1 March 2020, currently for a period of four months, which may be extended if necessary.
To utilise the CJRS an employee will be furloughed. Furlough is a term used to describe a period of voluntary leave that is subsidised by the UK government as part of its response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The CJRS allows employers to claim 80% of eligible individuals’ monthly wage costs, up to £2,500 a month, plus the associated Employer National Insurance contributions and pension contributions (up to the level of the minimum automatic enrolment employer pension contribution). The employer may wish to contribute the remaining 20%, however, there is no obligation to do so.
The University will ‘top up’ the payment to ensure all furloughed employees receive 100% of their usual salary. (see Pay and conditions).
All UK employers with a UK payroll can apply, including businesses, charities, recruitment agencies and public authorities.
Employees must have been enrolled on a PAYE payroll scheme on or before 19 March 2020 and have a UK bank account. The scheme covers all employees, including full and part time, agency, flexible or zero-hour contracts.
The scheme may be appropriate for some University staff, specifically, where a role is not primarily funded using public funds, and the employee cannot be redeployed to assist with the COVID-19 response.
The Government guidance as of 17 April 2020, stated that higher education providers should only furlough employees and seek support through the CJRS if the following conditions are met:
Following the government's response to the global COVID-19 pandemic, the University is now operating in a reduced state and as such has considered various options to protect and preserve our staff and the future of the University.
In the current environment, there are no longer enough roles across the University for all our staff to fulfil, therefore the University has taken the decision to use the CJRS. The University has not taken this decision lightly and has considered all available options, including seeking alternative funding and redeployment.
The University has consulted with its recognised Trade Unions, who understand that the University is taking these steps to protect and preserve the long-term future of its employees and the future of the University.
The University has identified employees deemed eligible under the CJRS using the following :
Once the posts that are in scope for the CJRS have been determined, the University will then determine which employees in these posts it intends to seek agreement to be furloughed. This will be a determination to be made by the relevant Executive Director or Dean (or their nominated deputies), taking into account:
The University is continuing to review the situation around COVID-19 and any employees identified to be furloughed will be contacted directly by the University. If you believe that you meet the criteria to be furloughed but haven’t been approached by your Faculty or Professional Service area, please contact your line manager in the first instance.
The University will follow a fair and consistent selection criteria, in cases where there is a requirement for some employees to continue working while others are furloughed.
Where appropriate to do so, the University may take into consideration Government and Public Health England advice regarding protecting those who are at greater risk of serious ill-health.
Employees can volunteer themselves to be furloughed, although there is no guarantee that the University will be able to accept volunteers, as employees will need to meet the eligibility set out in the earlier question entitled ‘Which staff will be furloughed?’.
Any request to be furloughed will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.
As there is no impact on pay for the individual, it is unlikely that any staff will refuse to be furloughed. If an employee disagrees with a decision to furlough them it is important that the employee explains to their line manager the reason(s) for refusal to ensure there hasn’t been any misunderstandings.
If the employee continues to refuse to be furloughed, the line manager/department representative should discuss this with their HR Business Partner as soon as possible. Any refusal may lead to the University having to consider alternative options, such as redundancy.
Short-term illness/self-isolation has not been used as a consideration in deciding employee eligibility for the scheme. The employee must still meet the other key criteria in order to be furloughed, as it would be expected that the employee would be able to return to work in the near future. Sickness absence related to Coronavirus must be reported using standard procedures.
Employees who are shielding or on long-term sickness leave may be eligible to be furloughed. To do so they must also meet the key principles outlined above. In each case, this will be a determination to be made by the relevant Executive Director or Dean (or their nominated deputies), assisted by their Heads of Faculty or Professional Service Finance and HR Business Partners.
Employees who are unable to work due to caring responsibilities may be eligible to be furloughed. To do so they must also meet the key principles outlined above. In each case, this will be a determination to be made by the relevant Executive Director or Dean (or their nominated deputies), assisted by their Heads of Faculty or Professional Service Finance and HR Business Partners.
Employees currently on Maternity/Adoption/Paternity/Shared Parental leave who meet the outlined criteria can be furloughed in the same way as other staff. If furloughed, they will continue to receive the same pay as if they had not been furloughed.
Government guidance states that if an employee has more than one employer, they may be furloughed in each job. Each job is viewed as separate, and the 80% payment cap (up to the £2,500 maximum) applies to each employer individually.
Where an employee has multiple contracts with the same employer, the employee must meet the eligibility criteria for all of their roles in order to be furloughed.
The University has taken the decision to ensure that any employee placed on ‘Furlough Leave’ will not be disadvantaged. The University will ‘top up’ the payment to ensure all furloughed employees receive 100% of their usual salary from the agreed date. This will be reviewed in accordance with the scheme. Normal deductions for tax and N.I. will apply, whilst normal pension contributions will continue to be made.
Salary payments will continue to be processed as normal and, as such, there will be no change to the date employees are paid.
Furloughed employees will accrue holiday entitlement as normal and are expected to continue to use their holiday entitlement during the current leave year. An employee can take holiday while on furlough and may be directed to do so by their line management with appropriate notice.
The University will not consider COVID-19 to be an exceptional circumstance that would prevent an employee from taking holiday, unless the employee is a frontline worker. Any holiday remaining at the end of the leave year will not be allowed to be carried over into the 2020-21 leave year, unless for exceptional reasons approved by the respective employee’s Dean/Executive Director.
Employees will have a temporary change in status as they will be designated as ‘furloughed’. Furloughed employees will remain employed by the University, and no other terms and conditions will be affected by this change.
The University’s intention of using the CJRS is to avoid having to consider alternative measures such as job losses. The University very much hopes that, by making the decision to take action now through the CJRS, it will not be required to take other drastic measures in the future. However, we cannot make any guarantees on future employment at this stage.
Under the rules of the scheme employees must be furloughed for a minimum of three weeks.
Employees may be furloughed more than once, or rotated between colleagues within a team, providing each period lasts for the minimum three-week period.
The University will monitor and review the situation and will communicate any changes to employees who have been furloughed.
The CJRS scheme explicitly states that the employee should not carry out work for the employer when furloughed if the work:
Academics and/or Researchers wishing to engage in personal research should discuss this with their line manager to ensure that the research does not fall within either of the above criteria.
The government has advised that furloughed employees can take part in volunteer work or training. However, this should be discussed with your line manager or department representative in the first instance.
Furloughed employees should ensure their line manager/department representative has their correct contact details. Line managers/department representatives will be expected to make regular contact with furloughed employees.
To be eligible for the CJRS, employees must be furloughed for a minimum of three weeks. If the situation changes after this, we will agree for employees to ‘return to work’ (physically or otherwise) as and when appropriate. It is important that there is regular contact between furloughed employees and their respective line manager to stay informed.
The University will provide three calendar days' notice of the requirement for furloughed employees to return to work.
Staff should report self-isolation or sickness (whether linked to COVID-19 or otherwise) by calling the absence reporting hotline on +44 (0)23 8059 7111 (open Monday-Friday, 08.00 – 17.00) or via the self-service Absence Reporting Form.