Furlough and/or getting another job?

[Mooooooon]

DD is home from uni. Her part time job (food service, 12 hours a week) was cancelled. She heard yesterday she is entitled to the 80% of her pay.
Today she has been offered a part time job (supermarket) 16 hours a week. She’s accepted it but who does she tell regarding the 80% thing? Can she do both? Should she? There’s nothing in her contract about only having one p/t job. She’s still having to pay her rent for her uni house until the end of the summer which is a bit of a problem.

[Patchworksack]

I'm furloughed and we've been told if we do any other paid work during our contracted hours it's fraud. However a colleague had two part time jobs and has been furloughed by one and not the other, which is fine. So maybe it depends if there would have been overlap?

[Atalune]

She can’t take the furloughed money. It feels like fraud.

[Mooooooon]

It is wrong. But there’s no way of now declining the furlough.
I’ll investigate further tomorrow though.

[Youngatheart00]

Not sure of the legality but it’s poor form to take the 80a% whilst earning elsewhere. And I’m pretty sure HMRC would pick up on it, at worst come down like a ton of bricks and at best super tax the additional earnings either immediately or as a subsequent tax bill.

Best bet is to resign from the company which has her furloughed and take the new job.

[Mooooooon]

It’s the during the contracted hours thing that is confusing the issue. The contracted hours for both are so few.

[Mooooooon]

I’ll get her to contact original job tomorrow.

[Mooooooon]

It was a bit phew some of the rent is covered. Then yay, a job! Followed by bugger how do we sort this out.

[mrsbyers]

It’s often in employment contracts that second jobs need to have approval. She would be taxed on her furlough pay plus her second job so covered that way

[WitchDancer]

If you have 2 jobs then you can be furloughed with one and working the other. How would taking the job be any different? I say go for it!

[MadeForThis]

Martin Lewis has said on tv that if furloughed it's ok to take a second job and still receive 80%. Don't take him as gospel but he's usually accurate.

Furloughed wages at 80% are taxed and ni as normal so would second job.

[candle18]

I had read that it depends on your contract and the best thing to doos contact the original employer and ask if they mind her taking a temporary job. It would make sense in these circumstances as she would be able to keep her original job open for the time she goes back to uni. Could always phone HMRC as well to check.

[collywobble]

I checked with my accountant for one of our employees that we are furloughing and they said it's absolutely fine especially so in the case of a student as they probably will be below the tax thresholds if it's only temporary work . Good on your daughter for getting out and helping out there

[Mooooooon]

Thank you.

[FunnyInjury]

Furlough is per employment. Some people have 2 sets of furloughed wages.

Your DD is well within her rights to take the job OP.

Some of these posters will have kittens when realise that SE people will claim 80% and still be earning in some cases 😉

[Fishcakey]

You are allowed to work for someone else just not the company you are furloughed from I thought?

[Sereneren]

I've been told I can't work at all for anyone else and if I do it's breach of contract they will stop paying me.

[toobusytothink]

In theory you are allowed to work outside of your Contractual hours Of the job you are furloughed from but shouldn’t be working during those hours because they can call you back at any time

[Eeyoresstickhouse]

We had a team meeting today and it was categorically stated that you can go and get another job while on furlough.

[toobusytothink]

But as pp said, it does depend on your contract

[Mitzdob]

I was under the impression that if you are furloughed, and then got another job the money you earned would be deducted from furlough payment.

Example £300 original furlough payment
New earnings £100
New furlough payment £200

[Woodandsky]

There's nothing in the government guidance that says you can't get another job. If your contract states you can't get another job that's a contractual issue with your employer but it's certainly not fraud.


The employer will pay you the 80% then claim it back from the government, what you're doing elsewhere doesn't come into the claim.


I think if a furloughed worker is taking on a temporary role as a key worker (which a supermarket job is) that should be applauded not criticised.

[Sunnydays60]

From what I have read, you can work a second job of your original company agrees. Also, the minimum period of furlough is 3 weeks - so they can't call you back at any time. It would have to be at the end of a block of 3 weeks...

[Curiousmum69]

www.gov.uk/guidance/claim-for-wage-costs-through-the-coronavirus-job-retention-scheme

[Iamblossom]

I was told by my company that you can't work for the company you are furloughed from but you can go and stack shelves in tescos during the furlough if you want to

[MereDintofPandiculation]

Best bet is to resign from the company which has her furloughed and take the new job. No, because new job is almost certain to be zero hours, temporary. So she needs to hold on to original job.

Government guidance on lay-offs (the terminology has changed - what used to be termed a lay off is now called being furloughed) is that you have to have permission from the company putting you on furlough to do another job. She may already have this permission in the letter putting her on furlough.

In theory you are allowed to work outside of your Contractual hours Of the job you are furloughed from but shouldn’t be working during those hours because they can call you back at any time You need to keep yourself available to return, so it would be difficult to take an overlapping job which required you to give notice.

Government guidance here: www.gov.uk/lay-offs-short-timeworking/extra-work-or-claiming-benefits

www.gov.uk/guidance/check-if-you-could-be-covered-by-the-coronavirus-job-retention-scheme