The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme Survey (August 2021)
This paper presents the findings from SCVO’s survey on the use of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (furlough) by third sector organisations in Scotland.
The survey had 69 complete responses, while this response rate may not be large enough to draw any definitive or representative conclusions, it nonetheless contributes to our understanding of the impact of the pandemic on third sector organisations in Scotland.
It is reassuring that the respondents to the survey do not anticipate making significant numbers of staff redundant at the end of furlough, but it is disappointing to learn that almost 200 people across those 69 organisations have already lost their jobs.
Most organisations that placed staff on furlough did so because they were unable to deliver services or operate as normal. In total almost 1,200 members of staff from the 69 organisations have been on furlough at some point since March 2020 and 190 are still either fully or partially furloughed.
The data suggests that lower paid and female workers are more likely to have been (or still are) furloughed.
There is an anticipated negative impact on organisations finances (42%) and to a lesser extent on their ability to deliver core services or activities (25%) if furlough ends in September with restrictions still in place.
