Changes needed to government’s COVID-19 employment support schemes to ensure people don’t fall through the gaps

Citizens Advice welcomes 'unprecedented interventions' that have been made, but says that data from advisers suggests that more needs to be done

Changes are needed to the government’s COVID-19 employment support schemes to ensure people don't fall through the gaps, Citizens Advice has said.

Welcoming the launch of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme, Citizens Advice says that -

'We are seeing a huge increase in numbers of people coming to our website for support and guidance ... people are, understandably, concerned about their financial security.

The government has announced unprecedented interventions to address these concerns and shore up people’s incomes during the COVID-19 pandemic, ensuring that most households in the country will be able to avoid unmanageable debt.'

However, while Citizens Advice also says that it welcomes the government's subsequent extensions and clarifications of the scheme’s 'existing generosity', it says that the data it is getting from its advisers suggests that gaps in the existing package of support will need addressing.

For example, Citizens Advice says that, in relation to the Job Retention Scheme, changes should be made for people in the shielded group or who need to stay at home with someone in the shielded group -

• it should be made clear (as for parents and carers) that an employer does not need to otherwise be making that person redundant in order to furlough them; and
• people in these groups should in effect be given the right to be furloughed if their work would otherwise require them to breach public health advice.

In addition, the government should clarify the scheme's guidance to also give employers the option of furloughing workers in the ‘increased risk’ group, Citizens Advice says.

In relation to the Self-Employed Income Support Scheme, Citizens Advice says that it should be extended to people who have been self-employed for less than a year, and the government should also confirm it does not intend to add support from the scheme to the list of public funds, so that people without recourse to public funds are not excluded.

NB - Citizens Advice also considers measures to address the problem of employers making workers redundant instead of putting them on the Job Retention Scheme, and suggests that employers could be given more incentives or obligations to use the scheme. Failing that, Citizens Advice says that consideration should be given to welfare reforms including temporarily relaxing the capital limit rules for universal credit, turning advance payments into grants, and reviewing the value of key components within universal credit like the standard allowance and the local housing allowance.

For more information see Ensuring people do not fall through the gaps in the government’s employment support schemes.