Bring back furlough scheme, say unions

Unions have called on the government to reintroduce the furlough scheme to protect jobs affected by the latest Covid-19 mitigations introduced last month.

In December, in response to the rapid spread of the Omicron variant, prime minister Boris Johnson brought in a series of “Plan B” coronavirus measures intended to avoid a rise in Covid hospitalisations and deaths. These included reintroducing guidance to work from home and legally mandating face masks in “most public indoor venues”.

Unions say these restrictions must mean bringing back protections for workers in already hard-hit sectors like hospitality, leisure and travel.

Manuel Cortes, general secretary of the TSSA rail union, said: “The government must bring back the furlough job retention scheme to ensure no one loses their jobs as result of the new restrictions.”.

TUC general secretary Frances O’Grady described furlough as “the great success in the first response to the pandemic”.

She added: “The rise of the Omicron variant shows why the UK needs a permanent short-time working scheme — ready to go when a new crisis hits.”

Dan Shears, national health director of the GMB general union, said it was essential to offer workers proper sick pay for all those suffering Covid-related absence, “so no one has to make a choice between the greater good and feeding their families”.