140,000 UK businesses apply for wage support on first day of job retention scheme

Over 140,000 UK businesses have applied for the Government’s job retention scheme on its first day. The government is committing to cover 80% of workers’ wages, up to £2,500 a month, if they are put on leave.

According to Finance Minister Rishi Sunak, these businesses employ more than a million people, jobs that would be saved thanks to this scheme. “We promised support would be available by the end of April – today, we deliver our promise.”

The Treasury said that employers should receive the money within six working days of making an application, it says. Although the government has received praise for its plans to mitigate the economic fallout of the coronavirus, it is being warned that firms need support quickly.

Jim Harra, an executive from the Treasury, said that most payrolls are issued on the 30^th, so employers that claim by Wednesday, will have that money in their account by then.

Mike Cherry, Chairman of the UK SME trade body, suggested that the system had some hiccups in the early issues, which he attributed to the sheer number of applications coming in, but noted that employers had generally found it straightforward to submit the information required. However he warned that “the real mark of success for this scheme will be money in employer back accounts by the end of the month.”