Engaging with the Government on Job Retention Scheme flexibility

The CIPD has continued to engage with the Government throughout the crisis to share our knowledge, survey data and member experiences about how the Coronavirus crisis is impacting working lives. Last week Peter Cheese, CIPD Chief Executive, and Ben Willmott, Head of Public Policy, also met Labour's Bridget Phillipson MP, the newly appointed Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury, to discuss the situation.

We will continue to look at how flexibility to the Job Retention Scheme will work in practice, championing solutions that benefit employers and employees alike, when further detail becomes available in the coming days.

The furlough scheme and confusion around the return to work has been a huge focus of the CIPD’s media relations after its survey found that the scheme has saved more than 4 million people from redundancy. CIPD commentary appeared across national press, including Peter Cheese appearing on Talk Radio.

You can read Peter’s full statement welcoming Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s announcement of the extension to the Job Retention Scheme on Tuesday 12 May here. 

CIPD’s latest Labour Market Outlook released

The CIPD released its latest Labour Market Outlook, produced in collaboration with the Adecco Group. The quarterly report looks at labour market data, exploring employers' recruitment, redundancy and pay intentions.

The latest survey found that employers are holding off on recruitment, freezing pay and furloughing staff in order to protect jobs as the Coronavirus crisis continues. The CIPD's findings were widely reported across the national media and also quoted by Alison Thewliss, Shadow SNP Spokesperson (Treasury) in the House of Commons when questioning how the government intends to prevent job losses as the furlough scheme moves into its next phase at the end of July.

The labour market will prove to be turbulent in the months ahead and the CIPD will provide ongoing commentary through regular employer surveys and policy thinking on the interventions needed to protect jobs and the economy.

Returning to the workplace

The CIPD continues to share practical advice and guidance on our coronavirus hub and across social channels on returning to the workplace once lockdown measures begin to ease.

Our most recent live Q&A on Twitter (#AskTheCIPD) looked at the three key tests employers need to meet for returning to the workplace. We heard from CIPD experts and Andrew Willis from HR inform. CIPD Chief Executive Peter Cheese warns that even when these three conditions are met, the return to work must be gradual.

The CIPD will continue to commentate on returning to the workplace and on the flexibility changes to the Job Retention Scheme as more detail becomes available.