Feeling helpless

[MarkingTimeIm59]

I’m prepared for a flaming, just not brave enough for AIBU.
I’m part of a family run, horticultural based business. Grow produce for retail and wholesale. Obviously we have had to close the retail centre and furloughed all of those staff immediately.
Our produce in the fields needs to be nurtured otherwise it will fail. We are able to offer the 5 guys that work in that area individual vehicles to travel to work, remote clocking on and tools for the jobs that do not need to be shared. They can work at distances 200m apart ( never mind 2m) and any contact with office can be done via phone.
I’m devastated that they are insisting that they be furloughed the same as our other staff.
Some are young (30 and under), healthy - you have to be in our business - and live alone.
Partner and I are over 60 and can’t do it all. It won’t only be the virus that finishes off our business.

They don’t get to “insist” they are furloughed. Firstly it’s entirely up to you whether to furlough them or not. And secondly if their work is still there you are not in a position to furlough them, and when HMRC audit you might be accused of fraud.

CAn you ask the retail staff if they'd like to take on those roles?

Can you offer the 5 positions to any of your already furloughed staff?

I think many people (me included) will be going stir crazy at home & would rather have an actual job to do if possible.

They obviously feel that the retail staff have a better deal.
Can you sweeten the offer made to the others to bring them on side.
I guess they see the retails being still paid to sit on their backsides at home

Furlough has been set up to give an alternative to making staff redundant when there is no work available for them.

It is not to give people paid time off when there IS work there for them to do.

Do they have more than two years employment?

If they're refusing to come to work then they either take unpaid leave or annual leave. Or you dismiss them.

There are lots of people looking for work right now. The conditions you've described sound safe.

The conditions are absolutely safe. We wouldn’t allow anyone to work if they weren’t.
Very useful comments thank you - especially about the legal implications.
Unfortunately we can’t really offer the work to our retail staff - mostly older(ish) ladies like myself. It’s very physical.
I do suspect it’s a bit of ‘them and us’ .....
I’m going to look for some concrete, legal advice that I can present to them.