Umbrella companies and profit sharing bonus

[Lance]

Hello,

I'm a vet who locums at various clinics using an umbrella company. One of the main clinics I have been locumming for has cut my hours back to 25% of what they were, and I only have 5 shifts at other clinics set up over the next month. Currently most vet clinics are running on skeleton staff and only seeing emergencies - no one is hiring locums at the moment. I currently have no work at all for May, although the current clinic I'm at may be able to keep me on for just a few hours a week.

I'm panicking a bit, as you can imagine.

I would be better off financially if I was furloughed, however, I'm realizing now that working through an umbrella company may have screwed me over. They pay my salary as minimum wage and the rest as 'discretionary profit sharing bonus' scheme.

Does this mean I will only be eligible for 80% of minimum wage through the JRS? Is there going to be any clarification on this considering that many umbrella companies operate this way?

Sounds like you're a bit stuck but in more ways than you think.
You will only be entitled to 80% of the base salary/minimum wage. And you will need to be furloughed completely to get that.

More worringly, you appear to have a entered into a tax dodge scheme with the umbrella.

I woud suggest immediately quitting the umbrella before you do any more damage.

[Luciezilla]

Hello,

I'm a vet who locums at various clinics using an umbrella company. One of the main clinics I have been locumming for has cut my hours back to 25% of what they were, and I only have 5 shifts at other clinics set up over the next month. Currently most vet clinics are running on skeleton staff and only seeing emergencies - no one is hiring locums at the moment. I currently have no work at all for May, although the current clinic I'm at may be able to keep me on for just a few hours a week.

I'm panicking a bit, as you can imagine.

I would be better off financially if I was furloughed, however, I'm realizing now that working through an umbrella company may have screwed me over. They pay my salary as minimum wage and the rest as 'discretionary profit sharing bonus' scheme.

Does this mean I will only be eligible for 80% of minimum wage through the JRS? Is there going to be any clarification on this considering that many umbrella companies operate this way?