Furlough am I being rude asking

Furlough pay for June & July Is as normal 80%

August 80% no Employers NI and pension refunds to employers.

In September it drops from 80% to 70% and the employer has to make this up to the additional 10% to make it back up to 80%.

In October it drops from 80% to 60% and the employer has to make this up to the additional 20% to make it back up to 80%.

I know several people who have looked for, found and managed to start new jobs, in the last two months, all working from home, all the technology/laptops etc needed being sent to your address. There are jobs out there, so do not loose heart.
Be flexible and imaginative.

I have no idea how I ended up on this thread.....Sorry, my reply was for someone else.......Ahgh!!

Pehaps we should take a step back and everyone take a deep breath. Lockdown is taking it's toll on a lot of people.

Flying Handbag, no matter what you decide, I hope you get better soon. There are 74 replies to this thread not counting this one....more than enough advice for you to sort it out and take some action. The only other thing I would ask is that you let us know how you made out, because we care.

If you are concerned, I suggest you ask ACAS. That's what they do, answer queries like yours every day. Take a look at their website and ring them if you need further help. Simple.

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Furloughing is a new minefield for both employer and employees. Most employers made furlough choices on economic grounds, type of available work, and on any health/shielding requirements applicable to individuals. Data protection rules apply to other people's data so your employer would not necessarily be able to tell you full details of other employees/circumstances.
If it comes to a redundancy situation, the criteria for selecting posts must not discriminate directly or indirectly on any of the equality grounds such as gender, race, age or disability, and employers have to consider reasonable adaptions such as working from home for shielded disabled workers.

There is nothing preventing you from looking for alternative job while on furlough leave and handing in your notice in the normal way, but there are not many new opportunities elsewhere, and if you have long service with your current employer you will probably get some redundancy pay if the worst happens.

Another potential problem post redundancy if you become unemployed is the lack of a safety net, particularly if you do not have children at home ( or have savings) as universal credit, if you qualify, is unlikely to be enough to pay essential bills. It is best to prepare for the worst and hope it doesn't happen. You should be able to get job seekers allowance, which is a small non means tested taxable benefit based on your NI contributions, but there is a backlog of claims for that at the moment.

Surely that's confidential information. If, in the future, you find that you have been unfairly sidelined for redundancy, that would be when you are entitled to make enquiries as part of the 'why me' question. Until then, you'll just have to wait. Your (understandable) anxiety about the future is not a valid reason to be given this information, I'm afraid.

I'm on furlough myself, and have some idea as to which other of my colleagues are, as we've chatted informally about it on our Whatsapp group. However, I'm psyching myself up for when it all ends and I have to look for another job as I can't see our business sustaining itself through this period.

I imagine you are perfectly entitled to look for another job while you are furloughed, but phone your union or a job centre and check.

I doubt, though, that you will have much chance of getting a job right now, as most firms will have staff who are furloughed or have been made redundant and won't be taking on staff.

I doubt they will be able or willing to hold job interviews either.

I can't help with how you find out who is/is not being furloughed (other than asking your closest colleagues to see if they have any information) but there is much information to be found on Covid-19 in (but hopefully not!) the workplace, here:

www.moneysavingexpert.com

Hope it helps.

Regards

There us a process to follow regarding redundancy. Don't forget that it is not the person who is made redundant, it is the job.

www.3pb.co.uk/content/uploads/2-SJB-EqA-issues-under-Covid-19.pdf

This is document detailing the legal situation!

Does furlough come to an end at the end of August?
If so, when would I be told if I was going to be made redundant?
I'm a part time advice expert. We have, in our department, 6 people - 4 full time ( one acts more like a gopher doing heavy lifting etc) and 2 part timers - out of the 2 part timers I'm the one with the qualifications and experience. No-one else in the department has expert, recognisable qualifications of my calibre. One of the full timers is shielding and 3 are on furlough ( includes me). I've been working at the place for only one year which is the same as the other part timer. We need a dept manager but the company has decided not to employ one. The overall manager has a low budget and this has been the case since February 2020.
Worrying about it is an understatement.

You're not alone there are many people concerned about what happens after the furlough scheme finishes. My OH has just gone back to work this week after being furloughed but we don't know how much work there will be and for how long. We thought he may be made redundant when employers were made to contribute. Sometimes the managers don't know themselves what's going to happen. It's a stressful time all round really.

My daughter works for a charity and they have been totally upfront. Everyone knows who has been furloughed. They have also had the future explained to them. Eg my daughter will be going back part time in August. It helps that she is in touch with her colleagues and they have a zoom chat over lunchtime everyday.

Are any of the other workers your personal friends? If so, are you in touch with them?, calls,txts,emails etc? If so, ask them if they're still furloughed?or if they know if anyone else is,or if they are back at work etc? Just in your usual chat.I would have thought the manager can't name names due to data protection laws. If not i would only advise that to keep 'pestering' the manager (as he may see it) is certainly not going to help you, as he may see that as a cue to get rid of anyone 'annoying him' first. I'd keep my head down for a bit & try ask anyone like a friend or colleague with whom im on speaking terms, or a union rep if there is one.

Some may be vulnerable or shielding or childcare issues so in a decision to furlough where everything is equal they would furlough the vulnerable.

For companies with over 20 people under threat of redundancy there has to be a proper consultation period. This is why companies are looking at redundancies now due to full furloughing coming to an end in August where companies will have to pay more. They said, the new rules will allow furloughed people to work part time for their companies. In our organisation people are being furloughed in a three week oration basis and picking up other people’s jobs whilst not furloughed.

One of my friends found out that selected colleagues of hers,doing same job as her, have been furloughed, no one knows why individuals were chosen and others weren’t.

Hi there, and I'm sorry you are going through such an unsettling time. The reason your manager is not replying to any furloughed employees is because furloughed employees are not allowed to do any work whilst on furlough, and he may simply choosing not to call employees on furlough to be on the safe side. He also won't be able to talk about any other employees on furlough because it's confidential information.

Also, the process Grandad1943 describes is not a legal requirement, although companies must enter into consultation for proposed redundancies and present the criteria for selection. If you have a look at the ACAS website, it's really helpful and very clear.

grannygranby, agree they can tell you about your personal situation, even if it is 'that's still being decided, we don't know'. I don't think they can give you any specific information about other employees though, such as names. That might be breaching privacy legislation. I very much doubt you are the only one on furlough. Are you in touch with any work colleagues? Are none of them on furlough?

Grandad you have me worried now re the reference to those who are retired. I took early retirement so in receipt of private pension only at present. Is there some possibility that pensions will be affected then? No doubt prices will be rising to compensate for lost income to businesses of late and other expenses to businesses because of social distancing measures, but surely they can't mess with pensions can they?

I think you could ask how many people have been furloughed and the criteria for doing so, but asking for your manager to give you names, while understandable, might be seen as not the done thing. But you absolutely have the right to understand on what basis the decision was made. Ideally, your employer should have made this clear at the start. As for redundancy, this too needs to be done fairly and transparently, with staff consultation if more than 20 people are involved. Follow the Citizens Advice link for more information.

www.citizensadvice.org.uk/work/leaving-a-job/redundancy/check-if-your-redundancy-is-fair/fair-reasons-for-redundancy

Ocean mama I see your point but if you think you might be the only one furloughed that would be s worry! And a competent manager should be able to say ‘ you are at present’ or ‘no you are not alone in this’ Without going in to detail and simply explaining that further detail not known and will let them know when situation becomes clearer. It’s just respect for employee.

OceanMama I feel that what you state is very much the situation in this unprecedented crisis. It may well be that we are all in for some very hard and uncertain time indeed, including even all those who are retired and receiving pensions etc.

Are you in a Union? If so, talk to your union rep about it. In these difficult times, unions have dealt with thousands of cases like this. If not, you would be wise to consider joining a union now.