Lost job. So upset.

Very unlucky! Hope he finds something soon, if only temporary.

So sorry to hear about your son......so many people have lost their jobs and livliehoods when most of these stringent restrictions were probably not necessary (time will tell)…..some of my friends have also lost jobs ...oone of my friends' sons WAS a pilot with B A....he could have transferred to the RAF but didn't fancy flying fighter jets ...and its not the kind of job that can be done from home (!)…..I really hope this country will recover from this but I really feel for people like your son who left a job just prior to lockdown so had no income from anywhere …...can he claim any benefits - he has a right to, surely ? Good luck

It’s so upsetting for people, this happened to a relative of mine - his old company agreed to keep him on the books so he could be furloughed. I don’t know if this is something you could look at – it may possibly be a bit late now.

What really bad luck. I hope he finds something else when things ease. Its going to be a tough time for so many, sadly.

If he is going to claim Universal Credit, do it right away. It is a long drawn out process at the best of times, and must be slower than ever in the present situation.

Such an awful situation. Really feel for your son. No consolation that it is happening to many others.

A job offer need not be in writing. If it was offered and accepted verbally it is legally binding.
Mind you, that may be irrelevant if the new company doesn’t survive. A phone call to ACAS could be an idea.

Oh how upsetting for him - I am concerned that when my daughter goes back after shielding they are going to say that they managed without her for 3 months and make her redundant .... that would make her mental health far far worse sadly.

I feel sorry for your son and for you as you must be very worried.

He may not fancy doing so but would his old firm take him back if he asked? I suppose it depends on what he does and whether or not they have a replacement. They can hardly ask the replacement person to leave!

It was not in lockdown but something similar happened too my son. To see my hard working son break down and cry was heart breaking. Now married with little twins and a mortgage worrying about paying the bills as most people are. It's a difficult time for everyone my friend rang me earlier her daughter just lost her job. I think things will get better it's easier said than done support your son as much as you can. I do hope your son gets on his feet soon and heart felt wishes too you.

While some of those being furlowed are having their houses decorated, new gardens plus afternoon garden parties everyday, (social distancing) not for us, government paying, have fun and carry on.

I am sorry that your son has found himself in this situation - it truly is bad luck.

What a difficult situation for your son... as someone earlier said, he may be entitled to compensation. Isn’t a written offer, legally binding?

The job offer was in writing and had been signed and sent back.

They even gave him all the stuff he needed for starting ie lap top,mobile phone, even a company car.

He has sold his own car so now no longer has a car.

He has used the money to live on while in lockdown.

I seriously think he needs to consider legal action, it’s not a small company it’s a well known brand.

I must admit Castletown5 when I hear of people saying they're glad of a bit of time off to catch up with decorating or exercise (which I have I'm afraid)
I've had to hold my tongue, as you can imagine!!

Urmstongran … Thank you!

It was some time ago but I was offered a job with a Company in writing but no start date. I kept on communicating with them, having already turned down another definite job, but still got no start date. Went to Legal Advice and was told I had no comeback whereas if I had accepted a job and not turned up on that first day the firm could sue me for any extra expenses in recruiting someone else. Seems the laws are always in favour of the Employer.
Hopefully it has changed if any HR person could confirm?
I do feel for your son. Good luck to him.

This is happening to a lot of people and is unfair but not unexpected given how the economy has been burned out. If your son had a signed contract with his new employer he will be entitled to pay in lieu of contractual notice, but if his contract only allowed for one weeks notice during a probation period (which is common) for a new starter, it won't be much money, and no one who has worked less than two years with an employer qualifies for any redundancy pay in UK , so even if he had started he would not have received anything by way of compensation. He may qualify for job seekers allowance of circa £75.00 a week which is not means tested, if he has paid enough NI contributions, but this is potentially taxable if his income in the year it is paid exceeds personal tax allowance. Universal credit is only available if he doesn't have a partner who works. If he is a single person with no dependents, and has less than £16k savings, he may be able to apply but it is unlikely not be enough to pay rent/mortgage as it is only about £400 per month for a single adult living away from home.

My friends who are a couple who are both furloughed are currently v receiving £5000k a month. However even they are at risk of redundancy but unless they both get made redundant, ( which would be dreadful) they will not get universal credit. It is absurd and unfair, but furlough pay level was not means tested as it was a benefit to the employer to stave off mass redundancies temporarily. No previous employer was realistically ever going to re-employ ex employees and then pick up the cost of possible redundancy payments. The Government should not have publicised this an optionvas it was only ever theoretical in practice for most people who changed jobs in February/March.

The so called safety net only really applies to families, not single adults, and is not available if you have saved a little over 16k, which might be the case if saving for deposit on a home.

The only people I know who have not been impacted financially are
either key workers still working, or existing pensioners with guaranteed pensions in payment and with mortgages paid off. Even people about to retire have seen the value of their pension pots crash in value.

Hopefully your son will find a new job soon. Please don't let him become disheartened, and even if you can't help him financially yourself, do try to support in whatever way you can as impact on his mental health may be considerable.

Very Sad news! he must be devastated.
But tell him NOT to give up.
Keep applying for jobs, eventually, one will turn up.
he needs to keep in contact with his friends, in case they hear of anything.
It took me six months back in'91, with the help of friends, to get a contract. After four years, I finally was made permanent.
Never give up!
Best of Luck!

That's such bad luck, minigrandma

I think it may be worth contacting ACAS about the withdrawn job offer. Furlough rules won't apply though, as he hasn't begin working there.

He should apply for UC though, as quickly as possible. The rules on existing savings are quite complex but anything less than £6k is disregarded.

It's easy to do online. He'll be contacted by the dwp by phone instead of having to go to a Jobcentre. CAB have a service called Help to Claim and can assist with the claim and calculating entitlement.

If he has a mortgage, he may be able to get a "holiday". Check on Moneysaving Expert to see if his lender is doing this (most are, although interest is likely to be added at the end of the term).

The wait for UC is 5 weeks, but he can ask for an advance payment of around the value of his first payment. If his partner works, her income also may be taken into consideration.

Go to gov.uk universal credit-all info is on there.