The chancellor of the exchequer, Rishi Sunak, has announced a new job Support Scheme to protect jobs over the winter period.
Today (September 24), the chancellor announced that when the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) ends, on October 31, a new plan will be put in place for six months.
Sunak said: “There has been no harder choice than to end the furlough scheme…. We need to allow the economy to move forward and let people be in viable jobs… As the economy reopens, it is fundamentally wrong to hold people in jobs on furlough.”
He added: “I cannot save every business, I cannot save every job. No chancellor could.”
From November 1, the government will support companies to pay the wages of employees who are working to avoid redundancy levels increasing.
The requirements of the new scheme means employees must be working at least a third of their normal hours and will be paid for that period of working by their employer.
For the remaining hours not worked, the government and employer will pay one third of the wages each. Therefore an employee working 33 percent of their usual hours, will receive a total of 77 percent of their normal wage.
Businesses will be able to claim from the new support scheme and claim the job retention bonus in the new year.
Businesses that have not yet claimed from any of the government support schemes, will also be able to claim from the new scheme.
The chancellor said this new plan has had to adapt to the “new normal”.