Furlough and annual leave are employer potentially claiming money they are not entitled to?

mamaloo

In our company most of our annual leave is fixed eg we always have the last week in May off during schools half term.  We are currently furloughed the company have said that they are bringing the annual leave forward a few weeks and that they will top up our furlough pay so that for that week we get full pay.  This is because they want us back to work during the week we should have been on annual leave.  My question is If we are on annual leave can they still receive money from the government to pay 80% of our wage and then they just pay 20%.  I would have thought that they would have to pay us 100% and NOT claim furlough for that week . Does anyone know If I am correct? I just think that Furlough is costing this country so much its great that we are getting help but dont think the system should be abused.

Jeremy535897

See guidance to employers:

"Holiday Pay

Furloughed employees continue to accrue leave as per their employment contract.
The employer and employee can agree to vary holiday entitlement as part of the furlough agreement, however almost all workers are entitled to 5.6 weeks of statutory paid annual leave each year which they cannot go below.

Employees can take holiday whilst on furlough. Working Time Regulations require holiday pay to be paid at the employee’s normal rate of pay or, where the rate of pay varies, calculated on the basis of the average pay received by the employee in the previous 52 working weeks. Therefore, if a furloughed employee takes holiday, the employer should pay their usual holiday pay in accordance with the Working Time Regulations.

Employers will be obliged to pay additional amounts over the grant, though will have the flexibility to restrict when leave can be taken if there is a business need. This applies for both the furlough period and the recovery period.

If an employee usually works bank holidays then the employer can agree that this is included in the grant payment. If the employee usually takes the bank holiday as leave then the employer would either have to top up their usual holiday pay, or give the employee a day of holiday in lieu.

During this unprecedented time, we are keeping the policy on holiday pay during furlough under review."