Please help me with this furlough / finance question

[Hmmmmminteresting]

Dh was furloughed for most of the 1st lockdown
He went back in July and in August they announced 80% of staff were being made redundant. He applied for a new job in the same sector and got accepted at the end of September, and handed in his notice.
His old company then asked him to change his mind however his boss did have a word on the side and say that they were looking to merge with another business and personally he felt that him leaving was maybe safest, therefore he decided to stick with his decision and left.
His boss was right and the company is now merging with another and more have lost their jobs but not all.

Anyway dh started at his new company today -not good timing after the weekends announcement on lockdown 2.
They told him today that they really do hope to stay operating but said they did close fully during the first lockdown and furloughed everyone, and that he should be prepared.

This is worrying me greatly.
I've read up a little but don't fully understand - am I right in thinking he wont get a penny if they do this again and he would lose his job due to him starting today?
Would his old company be able to furlough him again or have i misunderstood?
If no to any furlough would we be entitled to anything? I earn 30k however this doesn't even cover our bills as we pay out £1100 a month in childcare let alone mortgage, car, utilities, life insurance etc. We will be screwed.

Please help me know what he would be entitled to to enable me to sleep a little tonight

To be eligible for the 2nd lockdown furlough, he would have needed to have been on the RTI at 30th October, since he started today it's looking very unlikely he would get anything. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news 😞

My husband was in a very similar position at the beginning of the first lockdown. All the cohort of people who changed jobs at during March were fucked.

His new company cannot furlough him, even if they wanted to then can't because of the cut off. The best he can hope for from his new company is that they keep his job open to start after lock down is over.

His old company could rehire him if he was still employed by them at the cut-off month. However they are under no obligation to (Boots wouldn't rehire and furlough my DH). He can ask and try and persuade them, but they may not.

Yes, it's unfair are horrible bad luck, but it is what it is. We lived off savings and universal credit for 4 months.

You might get universal credit if you have children. Also remember - you won't have to pay for childcare while he's off.

You may get UC on 30k if you have children. It won’t be much, particularly if you have a mortgage but better than nothing. You won’t need childcare though so that’s a lot saved! Sorry your in this position lockdown is awful.

Okay thank you for the responses it's appreciated.
His last day at his old company was 23rd oct and then he had a week off last week over half term for our eldests childcare before starting new job today.
Does that mean even his old company is no longer an option to furlough him? 😪😔

I’m very sorry - I think he’s not eligible for furlough if he is a new employee. I changed jobs in April (agreed pre-pandemic, long notice) and I was not eligible for furlough.

Hopefully the new company can stay open and trading for 4 weeks, and I’m sure they’ll try to prioritise those in your DH’s position if they can. Look on the bright side- they wouldn’t have been hiring if they didn’t feel that medium to long-term the work was there. This is short-term.

Practical stuff.
Have you had a mortgage holiday or can you apply now?
Childcare - what is the score here? Yes you need a place post-lockdown but £1,100 is huge if you don’t actually need childcare because your DH is not at work... it’s 4 weeks and I would expect a childcare provider to negotiate on this.
£30K is a good income temporarily if you don’t neee childcare and the mortgage is postponed. It’s much more fortunate than a lot of others.

The line if work he is in is a very busy and lots of work around - just not during lockdown. No doubt in our minds that the company will rehire him when it's over... it's getting through thats the issue especially with Xmas approaching. The little we have in savings I am reluctant to spend on Xmas if we may need it to survive.

"If employees were on your payroll on 23 September 2020 (i.e. notified to HMRC on an RTI submission on or before 23 September) and were made redundant or stopped working for you afterwards, they can also qualify for the scheme if you re-employ them."

He would have to appeal to the better nature of his old company.

Does that mean even his old company is no longer an option to furlough him?

I would not pursue this.

Concentrate on new employer e.g. DH showing willing with adding value while they furlough others, cutting fixed costs (childcare, mortgage, any cancellable direct debits) and paring discretionary expenses (e.g. Christmas gifts) to an absolute minimum.

@NoSquirrels thank you for the reminder on the mortgage holiday. That would save us £750 a month. I totally forgot this was an option as we didn't need it during 1st lockdown. That's definantely put my mind at rest a little!
Childcare is made up of £180 p/m wraparound and the rest is nursery but neither will be required if dh loses his job, however nursery require 1 months notice.
The immediate 4 weeks is not so much of a worry as the rest of the winter, genuinely do not believe this will be a 4 week lockdown
It would make no sense to open everything early December and have everyone rush out to the shops to buy presents, rush out for hair apts ready for Xmas gatherings etc. I just cannot see they would allow it.

The little we have in savings I am reluctant to spend on Xmas if we may need it to survive.

Good! If your childcare is so expensive your DC is/are little. They don’t need much and adults who love you will understand.

Sorry OP.

Many of us are in this situation. We won't be having a Christmas this year