Almost 60 per cent of businesses have not provided top-ups to furloughed workers’ pay

New ONS figures also show that, by end of May 2020, 30 per cent of workforce had been furloughed

Almost 60 per cent of businesses have not provided top-ups to furloughed workers' pay, according to new Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures.

In Coronavirus and the economic impacts on the UK: 18 June 2020, the ONS sets out data for the period 18 May 2020 to 31 May 2020 based on a voluntary survey of businesses.

Findings include that -

• across all industries for those businesses who responded that had not permanently stopped trading, apportioned by employment size, 30 per cent of the workforce had been furloughed under the terms of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS);
• the accommodation and food service activities sector and the arts, entertainment and recreation sector had the highest proportions of furloughed workers, at 80 per cent and 78 per cent respectively;
• 42 per cent of businesses who had a proportion of their workforce furloughed were providing top-ups to furloughed workers in addition to the CJRS payments (which cover 80 per cent of a furloughed worker's pay, up to £2,500 per month); and
• the education (private sector businesses only) and the arts, entertainment and recreation sectors reported the largest percentages of businesses providing top-ups to furloughed workers, at 76 per cent and 57 per cent respectively.

NB - in a separate report, Personal and economic well-being in Great Britain: June 2020, the ONS highlights that parents were more than twice as likely to report reduced income as a result of the COVID-19 situation - and nearly twice as likely to report that they had been furloughed when compared with those without children - and that half of self-employed people reported having reduced financial income, more than twice as likely as employees.

Coronavirus and the economic impacts on the UK: 18 June 2020 is available from ons.gov.uk