How to save jobs and afford staff after furlough ends

The furlough scheme by The UK Government is known as a Job Retention scheme. Take a look at how to make the most of your furloughed workforce and earn up to £3,000 per staff member through training them.

Whilst the government has sustained job roles financially as best as they could, to support livelihoods, there is no doubt that businesses, organisations and their market landscapes have entirely changed due to covid-19.

The Government has recognised both the high number of job losses despite the furlough scheme since 2020, alongside the incredibly high number of jobs at risk when furlough ends. Commun-IT recommends one very simple approach to organisations in desperate need of reducing costs. We hope that organisations can avoid losing talent, knowledge and loyal staff but implementing this approach.

We have dedicated articles for individuals on how to save their job or what to do if they have lost their job.

As an organisation, you should:

1. Firstly determine whether your salary costs must be reduced, or in actual fact, you need more productive staff to hit targets quicker.
2. Negotiate with staff in a way that you can make them an offer instead of losing them, especially if they want to stay with you.
   1. Offer the staff member new training if it assists negotiation.
      1. Training is Government-funded, worth £12-£15,000, therefore the staff member might cope with a temporary reduction in salary in lieu of a qualification.
   2. Offer the staff member a chance to change team/department/job function.
      1. There is a vast array of creative and digital skills that have led to a 36% rise in jobs in this sector. If your business can leverage these skills, it could be a game-changer: Most customers, more revenue, better processes and more. Book a call with one of our consultants to find out more.
3. Enable the staff member to work reduced hours
   1. You can also have a part-time apprentice if they can work in another role, such that overall, their work hours meet apprenticeship eligiblity criteria. Therefore, a current staff member can still undertake training but sustain their income by having a role elsewhere also. We can assist with facilitating this so do arrange a call with us if this avenue is your only option.

Read more about strategic moves you can make in our article Recruitment Practices for a Post-Covid19 Economy.