Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask Her Majesty's Government whether, under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, an employer and employee must enter into a written agreement reducing the employee’s salary before the first reduced payment is made.

Employers should discuss the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme with their staff and make any changes to the employment contract in writing as part of the furlough agreement. This includes agreement to any reduction in pay.

In order to be eligible for the scheme, employers must confirm in writing to their employee that they have been furloughed. If this is done in a way that is consistent with employment law, that consent is valid for the purposes of claiming through the scheme. Collective agreement reached between an employer and a trade union is also acceptable for the purpose of such a claim. There needs to be a written record, but the employee does not have to provide a written response. A record of this communication must be kept for five years.