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management & education news
EXPERTS CALL FOR FURLOUGH EXTENSION
AFTER INCREASE IN NUMBERS
MORE PEOPLE WERE furloughed in impact that renewed restrictions were
both November and December last year having on the labour market. “We
than in October, the latest government can expect the number of furloughed
figures have shown, despite a workers to remain high, but to gradually
temporary easing of restrictions at the reduce as the economy unlocks and
start of December. businesses get going,” he said.
Statistics from HMRC show the This has led to concerns around
number of furloughed workers what will happen to employment
increased by 1.3 million at the start rates if the scheme – which has
of November to a peak of 4.1 million, been extended several times and is
before dropping to 3.9 million by the currently planned to finish at the end
end of the month. Provisional estimates of April – is not extended again.
for December show this fell slightly to Charlie McCurdy, researcher at the THE NUMBER OF FURLOUGHED
3.8 by the end of the month, reports Resolution Foundation, warns that the WORKERS HAS INCREASED
People Management. scheme must be ended carefully. “The
Workers aged 25 to 34 were the winding up of the scheme in just three hospitality and leisure.”
most likely to be furloughed, with the months’ time is expected to cause a However, news of various vaccinations
accommodation and food services fresh wave of unemployment,” he said. are providing businesses with “much-
sectors being the most affected. Across “It’s therefore vital that the Chancellor needed light at the end of the tunnel”,
the country, London had the highest ensures a flexible transition out of the said Kirsty Rogers, employment partner
number of people on furlough, at 15 scheme, in order to avoid millions of at DWF. “It’s hoped that as the mass
per cent, compared to the UK average workers simply moving from furlough vaccination programme is in full swing,
of 13 per cent. straight into unemployment. employers will delay making
Joe Dromey, Deputy Director for “Options to facilitate this could redundancies and continue to use the job
Research and Development at the include subsidising part-time working, retention scheme until the end of April
Learning and Work Institute, warned as well as continuing the scheme for when restrictions may be reduced, as the
this sharp increase in the number of the sectors most affected by ongoing impact of the vaccine takes full effect and
furloughed workers was a sign of the public health restrictions, such as retail, the work may pick up,” she said.
WORKERS’ RIGHTS REVIEW WILL NOT GO AHEAD
THE REVIEW OF post-Brexit workers’
rights announced by Business
Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng is no longer
going ahead, reports Personnel Today.
Kwarteng admitted that the
government wanted to look at, but
not water down, some of the workers’
protections and rules brought in
under EU Working Time Directive.
However, an in interview with BEIS SAY THEY ARE NOT INTERESTED IN
WATERING DOWN WORKERS’ RIGHTS
ITV’s Peston programme, he said: “So
the review is no longer happening that’s what officials in the department Len McCluskey, General Secretary of
within the Department for Business, are 100 per cent focused on.” the Unite union, said: “The epidemic
Energy and Industrial Strategy. I made Reports in the media have suggested of low pay and insecure work in this
it very, very clear to officials in the that the review would have considered country are the real problems, not the
department that we’re not interested proposals to remove the 48-hour basic rights of working people.
in watering down workers’ rights. maximum working week, changes “Kwasi Kwarteng now has to put his
“I can’t have been more clear about to rules about rest breaks, removing money where his mouth is; if he wants
this on a number of occasions. I’ve overtime pay when calculating certain to improve the lot of UK workers, then
said repeatedly that Brexit gives us the holiday pay entitlements, and getting pick up the phone. We’ve got a list of
opportunity to have higher standards rid of the requirement for firms to log desperately needed workers’ rights
and a higher growth economy and information about daily working hours. ready to go.”
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