Last week, we made the first payments to those employees that we had furloughed.
From the outset of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) being released by the government, it was always our intention to help support as many workers as possible during these unprecedented times. Not only did we have the capability to do it, but we felt it was the right thing to do.
Like many other umbrella companies, it took us a while to get to that point. Legislative changes normally take years to implement – the new furlough status was rolled out in a matter of weeks. It was therefore not surprising that it took umbrella companies a number of weeks to work through the guidance and be satisfied they could deliver furlough arrangements for hundreds of temporary workers. Clipper Contracting Group worked tirelessly with the FCSA and our advisors until we were satisfied we could support our employees by paying furlough leave at 80% of the average taxable earnings.
We have remained fully operational and open during these times, to assist workers and answer their questions. We have responded in timely fashion to both email and phone enquiries and have attempted to communicate our process as best we can. It has been unfortunate in the way in which the CJRS guidance is written, that we’ve been unable to help everybody.
Clipper Contracting Group has always prided itself on its commitment to the workers and the recruitment agencies that the workers seek assignments through. We will continue this throughout 2020, a year that is likely to be tough on many people and businesses.
If have felt unfairly treated by your umbrella company or if you’re an agency reviewing a PSL, why not find out how we approached this pandemic head on. Call us on 01305 233170.