BAGMA OFFERS FURLOUGHING ADVICE

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As part of the Service Dealer conference call with industry representatives this week, BAGMA offered advice to dealers regarding the furloughing of staff.

Director of BAGMA, Keith Christian, told us, "It is really important for companies to know that they can furlough people, meaning to lay them off – and then apply to the government to have 80% of their salary paid up to a maximum per month of £2.500.

"When under furlough an employee remains employed by the company but is not allowed to do any work and they have to be at home under the current guidance. When things return to ‘normal’ the employee can be bought back into their job if it is still available and go back on full pay.

The government’s 80% payment is in place for three months and can be backdated to March 1st.

"It could be very important to help companies survive for the next three months to be able to furlough people while there is no work for them but bring them back into work at a later date and the individual will still get 80% of their salary from the government plus they will maintain their employment benefits and rights.”

A similar package was announced last night for the self-employed, but they will be able to get the 80% and carry on working if they are allowed to by the current guidance. In the self employed case it will be a lump sum payment for three months paid in June. It is important to not mix up self-employed and those employed under the PAYE scheme.

Keith Christian also went on to explain that BAGMA had dealers starting to contact them last week about what constitutes a key worker – and whether they could still send their children to school?

Keith said, “We concluded that agricultural technicians, those people involved in the food production process, would be considered to be key workers. The only advice we could give on that, was for those who thought they were key people, to contact their local school and talk to the schools themselves to see if their children could go in. The recommendation is to keep children at home if possible though.”

Keith continued, “Since last Friday we’ve been inundated with dealer inquiries, mostly agricultural dealers, wanting to know if they could stay open? They wanted to know if they were considered to be a critical or essential businesses. And it’s an interpretation of what guidance exists. You can interpret the government information given, in the way that you want to suit yourself.

“Our interpretation is certainly that the support element that the agricultural machinery dealer offers to the farmer is part of the food processing and production chain. So, we are saying that the dealers must make that decision for themselves, but we believe they are a critical or essential business in that respect.

“We are of course telling all dealers they must abide by what the government is telling them in terms of their duty of care for their employees. If people can work from home, they must work from home – that’s not a choice.

“Many businesses we have talked to are distancing their customers from their staff, by not allowing them into the business - delivering equipment to the gate and such like.

“I have to say, dealers I’ve talked to are using a lot of common sense during this crisis."