13th July 2020

Keeping you up to date: Changes To The CJRS

The government recently announced upcoming changes to the Job Retention Scheme, which change each month slightly from August. From August, the government will continue to pay 80% of wages up to £2,500 but employers will pay the National Insurance (ER NICs) and pension contributions for all furloughed employees. Supporting the furlough process means there are also some hidden costs businesses have had had to make, mainly ensuring Finance and Payroll staff are in work to support the claims process and administer the scheme.

For agency workers who work part-time with an agency and are paid via PAYE, it’s really important their employer supports them during this time. In order to do so, companies will need to look at the financial implications of paying ER NICs and pension contributions for all of their PAYE agency workers, as well as their full-time PAYE staff who are also on furlough. Unfortunately, the new changes to the Job Retention Scheme may not be something all companies or agencies are able to achieve financially and tough decisions are being made across a number of sectors.

Engage Education is continuing furlough for our agency workers in August!

We are proud to announce that we are continuing furlough throughout August for our eligible PAYE candidates who have been on furlough during and prior to June. Unfortunately, the Job Retention Scheme stipulates that no additional employees can be added to it at this time, the cut off for enrolling new employees was 10th June. We believe that this decision is the right thing to do for our candidates and we want to reward their loyalty, the Government Job Retention Scheme was put in place to retain staff and that’s exactly why we have decided to carry on with this scheme throughout August.

We’re really pleased to be able to support our candidates during this time and we look forward to continuing our relationship with them in September when schools reopen.

Our dedicated GJRS task group have been working tirelessly to implement the scheme over the past few months, analysing financials and liaising with payroll providers to ensure candidates who work with us via an umbrella company get the information they need – we’d like to thank the team for all of their hard work during this time.

Key Advice from our GJRS Team

• This scheme is entirely new to all sectors and businesses across the UK, the guidance evolved over time and you may have experienced things quicker or differently from various agencies that you work with. While we understand this may have been frustrating, it’s important to note that the guidance from HMRC has continually evolved – every time guidance is updated, staff need to be informed and trained and processes need to change to reflect this.
• If your agency has notified you that they can’t extend your furlough through August, think about the implications of changing employer. The future of the pandemic is still unknown and if the scheme needs to be extended due to a second wave and you’ve since changed employer, you may not be eligible for any support as the furlough scheme currently only allows employers to enrol people who were employed with them on 19th March 2020 – and that date may not change! While we can’t support new candidates who join us with enrolment on furlough, we can support you when schools reopen.
• The people working behind the scenes to implement and manage this scheme have had to adapt and support hundreds of people. They understand the situation you’re facing, they’re doing the best they can for you within the guidance provided to them.

Looking forward

We’ve been supporting our schools during the pandemic, we’ve remained open and have been helping many teachers and support staff find full-time employment for September.

While we can’t say for certain, we anticipate that there will be a lot of work available for supply teachers in the autumn – the governments’ recent announcement that all schools will open highlights this. 

For the best chances of securing work in September, become fully cleared for work with us during the summer so you can hit the ground running next term. Register with us here.