The newly created Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme offers grants from HMRC to all UK employers who need help to pay the wages of staff who would otherwise be made redundant, funding 80 per cent of their salary, up to the value of £2,500 per month.
In order to qualify for the grant, an employer must classify a worker as ‘furloughed ’, meaning they have been asked to stop working due to coronavirus, but have not lost their job.
Updated guidelines have been released covering topics including employees working for someone else, volunteering during furlough, pension contributions and redundancy.
But what about those on maternity leave?In ordinary circumstances, maternity leave entitles an employee to 52 weeks leave. The first 26 weeks of this