MNI POLICY: UK To Pay 66% Wages At Firms Closing Due To Covid

UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak set out a revamped version of the Job Support Scheme (JSS) Friday, committing the government to pay 66% of employees' wages at firms that shut as a result of new restrictions in response to the second Covid wave.

The original JSS scheme published on Sept. 24 was designed to come into force from Nov. 1 and would have seen eligible workers on reduced hours get three-quarter salaries for six months, with employers paying half of unworked hours up to the earnings cap.

It was criticised by labour market economists for imposing relatively high costs on firms choosing to keep on employers compared to similar continental European schemes.

Official fiscal forecaster the Office for Budget Responsibility must now assess the scheme's likely impact on unemployment, earnings and government spending, as must the Bank of England in its next forecast round for the November Monetary Report.