To ask for another week of furlough?

[Fasttrack321]

I was furloughed at the start of lockdown and have not been working since end of March. I have been looking after my 2 young children full time as my DP has been working full time. Luckily DP's job is secure and their employer is flexible with WFH.

My furlough pay is capped at the limit of £2,500 and has not been topped up so my income has been about half of my normal pay. I am very grateful to have been furloughed rather than lose my job.

My employer wrote to me on Friday and informed me my furlough was ending and I was expected back to work on Monday. I discussed this with my DP (who is classed as a key worker, not front line) as the kids are only in part time childcare. DS is 5 and in Reception, DD is 3 and in nursery 3 days per week.

My DP is working full time 9-5 and cannot change working hours this week at such short notice. So cannot do drop off and pick up for the children (nursery and school are about 15 minutes drive apart). DP also cannot WFH and look after DD who is 3 and needs constant supervision.

This week will be impossible to juggle, but from the following week we can manage with flexible working hours and the help of a grandparent.

AIBU in asking my employer to extend my furlough by one more week? I checked the government guidance and there is a specific provision for this which allows furlough for those with caring responsibilities. I would only want this for 1 additional week.

I am incredibly grateful my employer has asked me to return and I do want to return. I have been there years and have a good reputation for being one of their top employers and managers.

My only other option would be to use a weeks annual leave, but then I'd have none left for the rest of the year and summer holidays when I would need to take leave to cover childcare again.

Most of the company were furloughed and now being brought back bit by bit.

YABU - get back to work immediately.
YANBU - take an extra week furlough to sort your childcare out.

@zeldaa

To the posters asking about 60k and lack of responsibilities, this is entirely possible in certain sectors.

I agree but I can only think of sectors/roles that would also allow you to work from home to a degree.

@KeepingPlain 😆

People really can't hide the chips on their shoulder when it comes to money and their own hatred for men.

OP, all you can do is ask your employer, if they say no they say no. You can then work on other plans.

Trade places with some others. There are plenty people working full time from home, with ASN children and school work commitments. My job is ram packed every week. I still have to manage my children's school work too. One of which needs constant supervision. Your husband's employer should be understanding when there are children in the house hold. Yes they can make a noise or wander past the camera on a zoom call, such is life! Employers "can" extend furlough. They don't have to. The country has spent an absolute bomb on furlough wages I believe already. There are many of us that really needed time off and have been covering for people on furlough for the same pay. Take a weeks annual leave or 2.5 days each. You can pro rata your days and take half a days leave each

If the op hasn't got the sense to ring her employer on Friday then what advice can anyone on here offer ?
Even to request annual leave now would probably annoy the employer because she should of said something last week .
Seriously how some people manage to actually get employment in the first place with the common sense of a vegetable.

Did employer ask you 9am or 3pm on Friday to work on Monday ?

At my work, £60k is middle management level, so it's perfectly feasible that they would have no idea of what's going on at a corporate level, as the director group is responsible for that.

What's more implausible is that OP had absolutely no idea on Friday that they'd be expected back in work on Monday. A £60k salary usually means a person manages others. Unless OP works in a team of 1, this really can't have been a surprise, and should therefore have been adequately planned for.

Honestly - who on earth do you think is paying for the furlough. Yep - tax payers! Surely you can organise something or use savings?

There are just too many people now looking for ways to use the furlough scheme for their own ends. Please get back to work (just like the rest of us!).

I wouldn’t ask your employer. I used to work with someone who used to find every last penny to scrape from our company. She used to think no one noticed - we all did....

That's what I mean by knowing what's going on @hadenoughbleach as I would expect info to be cascaded.

I wk pt & would be on 55k if full time. I don't manage anyone. My job is ok finance & involves lots of spreadsheets so very easy to do from home.

Yeah go and ask for another weeks furlough.

I’m sure the rest of us can carry on working to pay so you can have another week off.

The furlough scheme was there to save companies and jobs. Jobs/wages/taxes which will be needed to pay for it and the dropout from this virus 🦠

So really you should get back to work as soon as you can but if you feel you need that extra £2500 from the government then feel free to ask.

I volunteered to be furloughed but instead had to cut my holiday short and go back to work in March.

Hay ho that’s how the cookie crumbles maybe next time you can carry on working then I can have a 4 month break with my family

I think telling you on Friday that you need to return to work on Monday is very unfair. So I would ask for another week, yes. And if they say no, take leave.

I’m frontline nhs and both myself and husband (also keyworker) have had to use up most of our leave for the year to cover the childcare from end of March to June whilst the nursery was shut because it wasn’t possible for us to work at home. No option for either of us to be furloughed. At least you only have 1 week to worry about!

A employee does not decide whether to be furloughed or not. An employee is entitled to annual holiday entitlement but the employer can decide when they take it.

Annual leave . Asking for another week when you’ve been at home being paid for months is cheeky as f

Unfortunately it's probably too late to get an extra week of furlough. Some combo of annual leave for you and your DP is probably the best option.

You are definitely NBU to be annoyed - Friday notification for returning to work on Monday when they know you have small children is outrageous and shows a real lack of care to their staff.

I think people are being very unfair to your DP - both me and my DH have understanding employers but that is really no notice to rearrange their working week, especially the first half of their week.

I understand why people are suggesting an emergency nanny and that could work if you were desperate but I wouldn't want to leave my kids all day every day for a week with someone I'd never met.

Good luck coming up with a plan. Hope your employers are sympathetic to an annual leave/parental leave request.

On another note - if this is your company's idea of caring for their staff I think I'd be looking for a new role when things settle down in a few months or so.

If you can afford it take emergency unpaid leave

You are entitled to a couple days emergency leave for such circumstances when you have last minute child care issues - telling you Friday is giving you no notice at all given most childcare settings are shut weekends

Who on earth leaves their kids with someone they’ve never met🤷‍♀️

Furlough is applied for each member of staff, at the end of each month.

Therefore it's not a case of undoing the process as many pps have stated.

I hate people who comment with no knowledge! It will be fine, speak to your line manager ASAP. HR won't have un-furloughed you.

It sounds like you were furloughed for diminished workload, therefore if your workload is no longer diminished under the HMRC guidelines you cannot be furloughed any longer.
You should be allowed to take unpaid leave or holiday.

Who is furloughed is chosen by employer and although they can look at caring responsibilities it isnt a definite reason for it. I am single parent and carer to my mum.. I didnt get furloughed but a lot of my area did. Just have to juggle stuff.

Another vote for annual leave - the taxpayer shouldn't be funding this extra week when your employer is willing to pay.

Stop this being so emotional people. The govt scheme is there to support these situations. Explain to your employer you need more notice so can the furlough continue. It’s not going to come out of their piggy bank.

Fasttrack321 - Unfortunately furlough is not the choice of an employee but that of an employer and it is only available if there is no work available for you.

It sounds like your employer has work available and therefore furlough would not apply to you. As I understand it, you could take annual leave OR unpaid parental leave for the additional week.

I'd say it's worth asking - just say with that extra notice you can get things sorted, but will be a struggle if not..they can only say no. Then you could go down the annual leave line and see if they'd be happy with that.

I think it wouldn’t be just to ask for furlough for another week. Take your annual leave or ask your other half to do so. I would feel awful to ask to be furloughed. You have had a weeks notice surely that’s enough time to get organised. Like someone said you know you employer best to make that call. Maybe it’s pride but I certainly like to keep my private matters private and would never tell anyone at work having childcare issues! In my role Organization is a big part of it! Telling them I can’t organise my household at short notice is like telling them I can’t do my job😉

I think you should ask for one more week of furlough if they’re leaving you in the lurch at such short notice!
Not just for the childcare, but more for prepping to go back to work after how many months off!