Had anyone ever heard of furlough before this month?

[Thatbloodybear]

Just musing that furlough, along with social distancing and self isolation are phrases we probably all read hundreds of times a day on MN. Has anyone ever heard of furlough or experienced it before now?

It was a military term for an authorised break away from active service.

Nope. Never heard of it before and I am now furloughed. Wasn’t expecting it as a teacher.

Nope. I’d heard of the word but didn’t know what it meant.

Yes, with regard to prisoners.

I've seen it in small print in employment contracts before, called gardening leave.

No, never heard of it before. Sounds more like something a horse should do!

I've seen it in small print in employment contracts before, called gardening leave.

'Gardening leave' is something rather different - not least in that it's paid!

an employee's suspension from work on full pay for the duration of a notice period, typically to prevent them from having any further influence on the organization or from accessing confidential information.

It’s a more common term in certain industries. I’m familiar with it as it is used in the airline industry. In that case it typically means that employees are laid off without pay but that when demand picks back up, they will rehire in seniority order off the list of furloughed employees and this will be basically automatic (no interview, etc) before hiring new employees. Furloughed employees maintain their seniority number during their furlough period as well. People who were furloughed are able to get new jobs during their furlough if they want to or are able to and do not have to come back to their original employer when they start recalling furloughed employees.

I think the point of using the term in these circumstances is around the expectation that the rehiring into the employee’s job will essentially be automatic, as opposed to be laid off and then rehired at a later date.

It's a word that is used a lot in the books I read as a child in the late 60s / mid 70s - often associated with stories about children detectives that went to private schools or similar! Lashings of ginger beer.... as the famous five never actually said!

Not something I or DH had ever come across until a fortnight ago.

Only from orange is the new black. Had no idea that was how it was spelt!

How is it pronounced? Fur-low? Furl-off? Furl-ow?

@Gotakeahike that's a fab example that's helped me understand it a lot more, thanks!
So for example if a regional airport got quite in the winter staff could be furloughed and come back for summer season but keep seniority etc? I used to fly, but ever heard it called that, we just called it a lay off.

Yes my ex was military so I’d heard the word quite a lot.

Yes, it appears in the Chalet School books - the founder's otherwise useless older brother appears on furlough to give blessing to the project. It's also in the marching elephants song in the Jungle Book.

I've always pronounced it "fur-loh" like the song, but that may be the American pronunciation.

Fur-low.

I had heard of it in reference to government workers during the US shutdowns which have become an annual event since republicans decided working together with the democrats for the good of the nation was a really bad idea.

Yes, as a consultant in finance, I regularly get furloughed for a few weeks over Christmas.

Over here the main difference between furlough and being laid off is you still keep your health insurance through the employer that furloughed you, also you dont have to fulfill the actively looking for work part when you start claiming unemployment

Lots of missionaries in the older generations of my family. Furlough was an important feature, as they got to travel back and see family.

In the Woody Allen film Love and Death, the soldiers are given a furlough after training, before heading into battle.

That’s the only time I remember hearing the word before now.

only time I heard this word before was on OITNB

In our contracts it’s known as a temporary lay off, with statutory guarantee pay of £29 per day.

OITNB here too

yes, we worked for a charity overseas.
Periods back in UK were furloughs.
It was to distinhuish them from holidays.
You continue to work for the organisation, getting rest, sometimes helath care, sometimes further training, touchign base with family and friends, visiting and sharing about the work so that people will donate.
Then you take an actual holiday, and return to your field of service.

Its more widely used in the States, never head it used in UK before.