The furlough scheme for golf clubs

The National Golf Clubs Advisory Association outlines the latest advice for golf clubs with regards to the furlough scheme.

On October 31, 2020 Boris Johnson announced further lockdown restrictions for England.

At the same time as introducing the lockdown restrictions, Mr Johnson announced the continuation of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS), commonly referred to as the furlough scheme. The Job Support Scheme and the Job Retention Bonus, previously reported upon, will now be delayed until the CJRS closes.

On November 5, 2020, the chancellor announced the further extension of the CJRS through until March 2021.

The continuation of the CJRS will apply to the whole of the UK, apparently regardless of the potentially differing restrictions imposed by the devolved governments.

There is only a small amount of information available on the government website at the present time on the continuation of the CJRS, but we can advise our member clubs of the following:

• Employers will be able to recover up to 80 percent of wages (up to a cap of £2,500) for hours not worked by employees.
• The flexibility options within the existing CJRS will continue, to allow employees to work where they can.
• Employers will now be asked to pay just national insurance and pension contributions for their staff, although the level of employer contribution will be reviewed by the government in January 2021.
• Neither the employer nor the employee needs to have previously used the CJRS, and the scheme is available in respect of employees who were on the employer’s PAYE payroll by 23:59 on October 30, 2020.
• The previously reported Job Support Scheme will not be introduced until after the CJRS ends, which is due to be March 2021.
• Employers must still agree any changes to pay / working time with their employees for the CJRS, so many employers will now have to hold swift conversations with employees in order to agree furlough terms, perhaps cancelling the Job Support Scheme agreements reached in advance of today. Again, those agreements for furlough terms under the CJRS must be evidenced in writing.

As soon as further information is available from government, we will update our members accordingly. For advice on employment law and any other legal matter affecting your golf club, please contact alistair@ngcaa.co.uk or telephone (01886) 812943