To think that furlough at 80% is FAR too generous.....

[loveyouradvice]

I'm just interested about what others think... I think fine to do this for first three months but really do feel it should be down to 60% or 70% maximum by now....

People on 80% of salary, with no travel or expenses related to working away from home, are really not doing badly .... especially since so much less to spend your money on

It is everyone else I think is having a tough time - whether its kids not getting Free School Meals in holidays, or freelancers or those who've lost their jobs....

I would prefer the "pain" to be shared.... so if on furlough, yes lots of free time and yes, having to tighten your belt a bit....

Would it not be better to pay LESS in furlough - I'm thinking around 65% - and MORE to those who don't qualify but are having a very tough time financially..... ?

I think for nmw employees 80% isn't enough to meet basic needs and that the 2500£ cap isn't enough for higher earners who have expenses due to their incomes.

So you could have an airport contract cleaner getting 80% of what is a relatively low income.
And a pilot getting 50% of what is a relatively high income.

I do think 80 percent is generous and many companies make it up to 100 percent anyway. Many countries in Europe are paying 70 percent. The mortgage holiday is being extended too and further help for self empoyed. It is good people are not just being left to claim UC. Xmas is coming too. I do worry it will be our children and even our grand children who end up paying the debt back though. I just wish the scheme was not so open to fraudulent claims. I hope any company claiming fraudulently has a huge find slapped on them. just hope Sunak repays this huge debt slowly so does not need to go back to austerity measures once Covid has vaccine.

The Government will inflate it away. No other option really. However given that they have devalued the pound massively in recent years already, what it means is that the next generations of UK children (and most of those in Europe) will be relatively poorer and in a weaker global position, and that is unlikely to be recovered, ever.

My rent is 46% of my wage plus other bills and food for 3 I have cut back were I can but my debt is building due to only 80% wage my ds cant get free school meals so his packed lunch is a jam sandwich and fruit and a homemade cupcake 5 days a week 65% wage would mean we can't eat and its not my fault work is closed

I am in a very similar situation. My “basic” salary is fairly low. Only seeing 80% of it, and no commission, has been extremely tough.

People on nmw might not benefit from a mortgage holiday. And the ones just above nmw with mortgages the mortgage holiday isn't a break from paying mortgage, just loading the debt for later. With the possibility of more expensive debt later.

The rich are getting richer whilst the poorest get poorer. That's really not good for anybody..

Another Tory gauging public opinion for a cut ?

I take it you don't struggle on minimum wage? I was furloughed earlier this year on 80% and it is crippling!! I have no travel expenses [ walk to work ], I don't get a daily coffee out, so no cutting back on anything. My out goings are still the same whether I am in work or not, so a drop of 20% is massive for me. I am single, so no partner to help out.
Trying to claim benefits for the difference is a nightmare -- I wish it were as easy as people seem to think. Being on furlough has put me on a financial knife edge.

The money to fund this should be taken directly from the over 60s in the form of a new Covid tax, progressive in its nature like income tax

Over 60s in work already pay income tax.

What do you propose for the pesky BAME/vulnerable of all ages?

The guys who delivered some logs to us recently said 'oh we're are just going to furlough ourselves. We may as well. We want the time off'. There is absolutely no reason why this company should furlough. They work outside. Minimal contact. I think it's a disincentive to work for some.

The money to fund this should be taken directly from the over 60s in the form of a new Covid tax, progressive in its nature like income taxhello

Thanks for that. I am over 60 work full time on minimum wage and really struggling, no pension to come, so what would you like me to give you?

YABVU. A lot of furloughed people are on minumum wage - pub staff, retail. I'm not on furlough but I think people's livelihoods should be protected.

And before anyone jumps on me, I will repeat the unpopular fact that the average age of a Covid death is 83. Average life expectancy is 82.3

I'm jumping on you:

What do you propose for the pesky BAME/vulnerable of all ages?

Not so clever now, eh?

@Noitjustwontdo

Many people on furlough are in low paid jobs receiving NMW. They struggle to pay their bills and buy food at the best of times and now they’ve taken a 20% pay cut. Their commute to work might stop but their rent, gas, electricity, water and so forth does not.

It’s not too generous at all. In an ideal world nobody would take a pay cut at all. They aren’t choosing to be on furlough.

In fact utilities go up if you're at home all day so there's that expense to factor in too.

@NikeDeLaSwoosh

The money to fund this should be taken directly from the over 60s in the form of a new Covid tax, progressive in its nature like income tax.

This whole shitshow is solely for the benefit of the elderly, so hearing that their pensions have recently been increased due to the triple lock was particularly galling.

If we as a society have taken the decision to sacrifice so much to extend the lives of people who are well past average life expectancy, it’s not at all unreasonable to expect the bulk of the financial burden to fall on them.

...and before anyone jumps on me, I will repeat the unpopular fact that the average age of a Covid death is 83. Average life expectancy is 82.3.

Post viral fatigue, now rebranded as long Covid is indeed a regrettable thing, but we really do need to just suck it up.

The current strategy is just Getting farcical now.

Yuk. And posters say MN isn’t ageist.

For many people the rent or mortgage is at least 50 % of their income. How do you expect them to pay for their bills on the other 15%. Clearly your income is higher than most.

Situation last lockdown-
Higher costs due to everyone being at home (heating and electricity)
My business had to shut down temporarily and ZERO income for me
Still having to pay full rent, utilities, car insurance, internet and phone ect ect
80% furlough of NMW for my husband
We were up shit creek without a paddle.

YABU.

@lovelemoncurd

The guys who delivered some logs to us recently said 'oh we're are just going to furlough ourselves. We may as well. We want the time off'. There is absolutely no reason why this company should furlough. They work outside. Minimal contact. I think it's a disincentive to work for some.

You don't furloughed yourself. The company you work for furloughed you . If these log guys are self employed they can't furloughed themselves. Perhaps it was a expression they can be off as long as they want but if they get furloughed pay is another thing . I'm off for the next month but instead of being furloughed I've arranged with my employer to work some days at home and take annual leave so I'll get full pay . Last time I was furloughed and it wasn't pleasant the time off out ways the less pay / job uncertainty and stress of that ill be made redundant. Oh yeah it's great fun being furloughed.

Slow hand clap to Margaret Thatcher. The age of the individual is here and people appear to not give a shit that hard working peopltin Britain might starve this winter. Not scroungers, not shirkers, workers.
Old and young. Her tactic of starvinf the miners back to work hasn't been that unpopular, if people at happy with what Boris etc are doing. Yes it's out of the ordinary, but it didn't have to be this shit did it? 4 weeks of stop on entry back on Feb would have taken most do the sting out of this but he was too busy being told what to do by Party Donors.

Yuk. And posters say MN isn’t ageist

The virus is ageist though.

Our response to it has to take age into account, to do otherwise would result in an absurdity —much like the one we see around us right now tbh—

If the elderly population want millions and millions of people to give up pretty much everything, so that they can live even further beyond their natural lifespan than they have already, surely it can’t be unreasonable to expect them to shoulder the bill?

I'm going to take a wild guess that OP hasn't been furloughed, probably still has a job that's paying her 100% of her salary and therefore doesn't have a clue what they are talking about.

Yes people who have fallen through the cracks need more help. It shouldn't be either or.

I'm assuming you're one of these who think everyone furloughed was just on some massive jolly for the majority of the year?

Do we really need these horribly divisive, accusatory (often full of misinformation), threads again? I was glad to see the back of them the first time round.

It isn't for you to decide who should be able to survive on what percentage of their wage. You've no idea the ins and outs of most people's incomes or finances.

And there was a cap, it wasn't everyone receiving 80% of their salary, it was capped.

We get it, you're jealous of people you perceive to have had loads of time off work enjoying themselves all whilst saving a fortune on travel expenses blah blah. In reality it's been very different for a lot of people.

Honestly furlough bashing is the 2020 benefits bashing. 'I go to work all day whilst they sit on their arse and get paid!'

A 20% pay cut isn’t manageable for most families OP. I am sure most people would rather be going to work on full pay, rather than 80%. If you were furloughed you would have a different opinion.

[quote EL8888]@MorganKitten l didn’t see your replies actually. Was that a dipping in and out day a week / fortnight thing or actually properly working full time hours?[/quote]
Why do you need me to justify doing something productive?

Mornings at the food bank, afternoons and some nights at the homeless shelter. That’s full time hours. Oh and some weekends doing deliveries for the golden hearted community page.

Productive enough for you or do you need more? Or is it not productive as it’s not official ‘work’, even when on 80% and covering my bills and costs to and from those roles (my proper job I can walk to, so that 20% loss made a dent) or is helping those in need not productive?