What does being furloughed Mean?
It means that the Museum has to ask you to stop working in order to get funded support from the Government’s Job Retention Scheme.
Will I get paid when I am furloughed?
Yes, pay for April will be at 100% as previously announced on 18 March 2020. If we are still closed in May and also June, pay will be in accordance with the Government’s Job Retention Scheme. Read more on the gov.uk site.
Can I do other paid work during whilst being furloughed?
If you work for any other organisation during your furlough Leave, other than one you already worked for before going on furlough leave, you must tell us. In other words, if you take on new additional role, there is a risk that HMRC will reclaim your salary payments back from the Museum and if they do you will have to repay it to the Museum. Please ensure you email [email protected] and receive a response from the Museum before committing to a new role.
What happens if I have pre-booked annual leave now that I am furloughed?
All annual leave excluding Bank Holidays, is cancelled during the period of closure. The Government has issued new guidelines relaxing the arrangements on carry-over of annual leave. Please refer to UK GOV website for specific details on this.
What happens if I have bought or sold annual leave under the Museum’s Buying & Selling Annual Leave Scheme?
If your request to buy/sell annual leave has been approved, this will be processed as planned. You will have received a letter regarding the change to your monthly pay and this will take effect from March payroll.
I have requested to carry over annual leave from my 2019/2020 annual leave entitlement, will this be approved?
As of yet, no requests to carry over annual leave have been formally approved. All requests will be reviewed at a later date and those employees who have submitted a request will be communicated with accordingly.
Should I check my Museum emails when I am furloughed?
We would encourage you to check your emails for any updates or changes to your current furloughed status.
However, you should not directly respond to any other work-related emails. An out of office will be put on your BCLM email addresses directing queries to an appropriate member of the non-furloughed team.
How will I know when I am no longer furloughed ?
We will contact you via email or Planday to give you notice of the proposed end of the furlough period, we can confirm that this will be no earlier than the 1st May 2020.
What do I need to do if I am sick whilst designated as furloughed ?
You still remain an employee of the Museum, therefore you still have a responsibility to keep us informed of any sickness absence whether it is related to Coronavirus or otherwise. Please email [email protected].
I am a casual worker, will I still get paid for any holiday I have accrued in my March pay?
Any outstanding holiday payments for casual workers will be paid in the April pay period.
I am a casual worker, am I included in the Job Retention Scheme?
At the moment the Job Retention Scheme does not apply to our Casual Worker Agreements, however we are continuing to monitor this situation and if there is any change we will contact those impacted by this.
I am casual worker and I may need a reference for other work, how I can I get this during the closed period?
Please email [email protected]. We will try to respond to requests on the same day, but at the very latest within 24 hours.
What about security of the Museum site during shutdown?
We have taken every practical step to keep the site as secure as possible during shutdown.
How will the Museum communicate with us?
The Museum’s Leadership Team will keep staff updated as the situation progresses. In the first instance, please keep an eye on the intranet where important updates and announcements will be made as appropriate.
Who do I contact if I have a question or concern?
A small numbers of colleagues have not been furloughed for reasons of business continuity and they will have access to [email protected].
How do I access my payslip?
The Museum operates an online (e-payslip) system called My Epay Window. You can access this by visiting https://www.myepaywindow.com/ and entering your username and password. If you cannot remember your login details you can request to reset this information by clicking ‘forgot password?’ or ‘forgot username?’ Anyone who has not activated their account will have recently been sent an invitation from My Epay Window which will have been sent to the email address held on file.
It is important that you access your payslips during the closed period to receive your P60 (End of Year Tax certificate).
Where can I access external support and advice?
We understand that the temporary Museum closure and COVID-19 is a very real concern for all colleagues. We suggest that colleagues take this time to explore external supports available to them. Our Employee Assistance Programme and Reward Gateway are good starting points as are the Government COVID-19 response pages.
What is the Employee Assistant Programme and how do I access it?
The Employee Assistant Programme is a confidential 24/7, 365 days a year service. Accredited counsellors and experienced information specialists offer support and signposting across a range of personal legal, medical, health and wellbeing issues, as well as a telephone counselling service.
Support can be accessed via the telephone helpline and there is also on online portal available, where you can access further information. To access the helpline, please call 0800 015 7287 (quoting Black Country Living Museum), or visit www.colleaguesupport.co.uk and use 72160 as your username and password.
What is the Reward Gateway and how can I access it?
You can access this via https://wellness.bclm.com. You will need your payroll number if you are accessing for the first time. The site is only open to contracted staff. It provides practical tools to support /assist with financial planning and health & wellbeing, including lots of practical videos on staying fit and recipes for healthy eating, which may be useful given the social distancing restrictions.
Will Forging Ahead be affected?
Yes, although the development is largely externally funded, there inevitably will be a delay in construction and a possible change in the scope of the project. It is too early to comment on the change in timings and overall plan for the development, but we will update colleagues, funders and stakeholders in due course. Construction will be paused until further notice.
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