FURLOUGH LETTER TEMPLATE FOR EMPLOYERS
[Addressee]
[Address line 1]
[Address line 2]
[Town]
[County]
[POSTCODE]
[Date]
Dear [Enter name]
I write further to our discussion on [Enter name] in respect of the current coronavirus outbreak, and the challenges we face as a consequence in continuing to provide you with work for the foreseeable future.
During our discussion, I set out the impact that the current situation is having on our business, which is [Enter details explaining the need to use furlough, for examp that, as a business in the hospitality sector, the Government has enforced our closure as part of its social distancing measures. We are therefore unable to offer work to any of our employees ].
The Government recently announced measures to assist businesses in the same situation as ours. This is the Job Retention Scheme which includes placing employees on “furlough” which is, as we discussed, a period of leave. The Government has confirmed it will provide grants to businesses to cover 80% of wage costs to a maximum of £2500 per person per month, when they are on furlough leave.
I am notifying you that we have taken the decision to use this scheme and will be designating “furloughed workers” very soon. We will seek your agreement before designating you as a furloughed worker. However, before we begin this process, we are waiting for more details on how the scheme will work and we ask that, until this is available, you bear with us. We appreciate that this is an unsettling time but we wish to ensure that we are implementing the scheme in the correct way.
We are taking this difficult step as an alternative to the prospect of redundancies in the near future because of the challenges we are currently facing.
If you are designated as a furloughed worker, you will not do any work for the organisation during this period and will receive 80% of your pay, subject to the rules of the scheme. You will remain employed by the organisation and your other terms and conditions will not be affected.
Those who are working from home, or can work from home, will not be designated as furloughed workers because work is still available for them to perform.
We will keep your period of leave under continuous review and in the event that the position changes, you will be notified.
We are doing everything we possibly can to ensure we are able to survive the challenges we are facing. We hope to be able to notify you of your return to work as soon as possible once the current situation is resolved.
We will be in touch again shortly to progress this process. If you have any queries about the contents of this letter, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Yours sincerely
[Signatory name]
[Job title / Department]
*delete as appropriate
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