Employer only paying 20% of holiday pay after furlough

msprestonbaker

My employer is only paying me 20% of my wage for my annual leave for unclear reasons related to me being on furlough from March-October. I work full time and am usually entitled to 28 days annual leave with full pay. They claim that the government only funded 60% of my furlough pay, which they topped up to 80% - which is false. I'm struggling to dispute this with them as they still have not given me a contract. Does furlough affect holiday pay in this way, or at all? 
UPDATE:
This is the messaged I have received explaining the holiday pay rate. 
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Furloughed 10.03.20 Returned 03.11.20

Furloughed ( March – October ) 8 months = 13 Days Holiday

Remainder Annual Holiday ( November – February) 4 months = 7 Days Holiday

Furloughed Holiday: £355.77 / 5 days x 13 days =  £925.00 x 80% = £740.00. Balance due £185.00

Remainder Holiday: £369.00/ 5 days x 7 days = £516.60

In normal circumstances  accrued holiday would be based upon the number of weeks worked: 48 weeks worked = 20 days holiday. Unfortunately due to these exceptional circumstances you were furloughed and was unable to work, however we would have expected any accrued holiday to be taken during the furloughed period. Therefore you have 7 days holiday outstanding since your return less any days you have had off since.

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This seems to be clear- though it was Not in my furlough agreement for me to take holiday during my furlough. Please feel free to leave advice or comments as I am still uncertain that this is correct.

elsien

Is this annual leave you took during furlough or annual leave now that you are back at work? 

msprestonbaker

Annual leave now that I'm back at work.

elsien

You should be being paid your usual holiday entitlement. Not having  been given a written contract doesn't matter if prior to all this starting your usual entitlement was leave on full pay.
I would suggest asking them to show you the specific guidance which tells them they can cut your pay to 20% - they won't be able to. 

msprestonbaker

Thank you! I've just emailed my boss and HR rep asking for an explanation, so hopefully they will see the mistake.

MattMattMattUK

msprestonbaker said:

My employer is only paying me 20% of my wage for my annual leave for unclear reasons related to me being on furlough from March-October. They claim that the government only funded 60% of my furlough pay, which they topped up to 80% - which is false.

That is not a false statement, CJRS originally paid 80% and the government also covered er's NI and minimum pension contributions, however that was phased down so in October the government only paid 60% and the employer had to cover er's NI and pensions, but you still had to be topped up to 80%, so your employer is correct. 

msprestonbaker said:

Does furlough affect holiday pay in this way, or at all? 

Not exactly, however I wonder if you are misreading what has been done. If we took a very simple 4 week month, you worked two and were on holiday for two, they would have to pay you in full for the two weeks you worked, they could then furlough you for the two weeks you did not work, but as you were on holiday they would need to top you up with an additional 20%, to reach 100% of salary for the holiday period. Does your payslip for the relevant period show Wages, Furlough and Holiday pay?

msprestonbaker

Thanks for the response. Ah, I see. Though I was back at work before it was phased down to 60%, and my coworker confirmed that my HR rep was incorrect in telling me they were only granted 60%. I will definitely bear that in mind though.
Besides furlough, I have not taken any leave at all this year, which is reflected in my payslips (though they do not show furlough pay separately).

MattMattMattUK

msprestonbaker said:

Thanks for the response. Ah, I see. Though I was back at work before it was phased down to 60%, and my coworker confirmed that my HR rep was incorrect in telling me they were only granted 60%. I will definitely bear that in mind though.

It was phased in gradually, so for March, April, May and June the government paid the 80%, plus the er's NI and the minimum pension contribution. In July and August the employer had to pay the er's NI and pension contributions, in September they could only claim 70% and in October that was lowered to 60%. They have also had to carry the cost of accrued holiday, although that can be mitigated down to only 20% depending on timing. All in all from July onwards furlough has been far from the free that many people presumed it to be. It is now currently back at 80%, although employers still have to pay er's NI and pension contributions, as well as the cost of accrued holiday and those costs will probably increase again in January. 

msprestonbaker said:

Besides furlough, I have not taken any leave at all this year, which is reflected in my payslips (though they do not show furlough pay separately).

It is not always helped by the way that payslips have been laid out, with many systems not designed to handle furlough, top ups etc. It is fairly easy to work out the figure yourself if you want to check the total is correct (even if not clearly labelled). Furlough time must be paid at a minimum of 80%, work time must be paid at 100%*, annual leave must be paid at 100%*, however you can be on furlough at the same time, with the employer only covering the cost of topping up to 100%. *There may be specific variations in your furlough agreement, however you may not be paid below either 80% if furloughed, or below minimum wage if you are working.

msprestonbaker

Thank you for the information. Though I am not quite sure what you mean- I have been paid 80% of my wages over furlough as agreed with my employer, which I am not concerned about. Even if they were only granted 60% or 70% - would this affect my holiday pay?
Do you mean that I cannot be paid less than my minimum wage for my annual leave? I understand that annual leave taken during furlough should be paid at 100%, but I am concerned about holiday pay after furlough now that I am back at work. I was not asked to take leave during furlough- but I would have done if requested.

MattMattMattUK

msprestonbaker said:

Thank you for the information. Though I am not quite sure what you mean- I have been paid 80% of my wages over furlough as agreed with my employer, which I am not concerned about. Even if they were only granted 60% or 70% - would this affect my holiday pay?

Not unless your holiday pay was specifically altered in your furlough agreement.

msprestonbaker said:

Do you mean that I cannot be paid less than my minimum wage for my annual leave? I understand that annual leave taken during furlough should be paid at 100%, but I am concerned about holiday pay after furlough now that I am back at work. I was not asked to take leave during furlough- but I would have done if requested.

No, I mean that annual leave should be paid at 100%, but that could be made up of 80% furlough and 20% top up, some examples below. (net is net of changes due to furlough, not net of tax).
Week 1 - Working - Pay £500 - net £500
Week 2 - Furlough - Pay £500 @ 80% - net £400
Week 3 - Holiday - Pay £500 - net £500
Week 4 - Holiday - made up of two components - Furlough pay £500 @ 80% £400 + Holiday Pay Top up @ 20% £100 - net £500

msprestonbaker

UPDATE:
This is the messaged I have received explaining the holiday pay rate. 
---

Furloughed 10.03.20 Returned 03.11.20

Furloughed ( March – October ) 8 months = 13 Days Holiday

Remainder Annual Holiday ( November – February) 4 months = 7 Days Holiday

Furloughed Holiday: £355.77 / 5 days x 13 days =  £925.00 x 80% = £740.00. Balance due £185.00

Remainder Holiday: £369.00/ 5 days x 7 days = £516.60

In normal circumstances  accrued holiday would be based upon the number of weeks worked: 48 weeks worked = 20 days holiday. Unfortunately due to these exceptional circumstances you were furloughed and was unable to work, however we would have expected any accrued holiday to be taken during the furloughed period. Therefore you have 7 days holiday outstanding since your return less any days you have had off since.

--

This seems to be clear- though it was Not in my furlough agreement for me to take holiday during my furlough. Please feel free to leave advice or comments as I am still uncertain that this is correct.