Coronavirus support: can we stop people falling between the cracks?

2nd April 2020

Fraser Of allender Blog

Emma Congreve - April 1, 2020.

There is no doubt that support for the UK workforce during this Coronavirus outbreak announced so far has been completely unprecedented. Despite this, we know it does not provide support to each and every person affected. This blog summarises what we know about some of the gaps and looks at options available if government were to extend support further.

There will be a number of people who were working as employees that will not have been scooped up in the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. There are a number of reasons why this may be the case. Their former employer may have ceased trading or may have taken the decision not to apply for the scheme, perhaps due to the issue of covering salaries up until the point that HMRC provide rebates. Whilst the reasons may be different, and some may blame unscrupulous employers in some cases, those on the receiving end are in the same boat and left without a source of earnings.

There are also contractors who operate within the PAYE system via umbrella companies whose contract has ended and no new work is forthcoming. This group is smaller than may have been the case had the UK Government not announced a delay of the bringing in of IR35 rules for the private sector until April 2021, but those working for public sector clients will have been adhering since 2017, and therefore would not have completed self-assessment.

Read the full article HERE