ENDING the furlough scheme too early could kill any recovery before it even starts, unions have warned.

The government began reducing the contribution it makes to the Job Retention Scheme (JRS) today, with employers having to pay an initial 10 per cent towards the 80 per cent of wages that furloughed workers receive.

About 2.4 million workers remained on furlough at the end of May, down from a peak of nearly nine million at the height of the pandemic a year before.

GMB union general secretary Gary Smith warned: “Ending the furlough scheme too quickly could kill a recovery before it even starts.

“Instead of driving us off a furlough cliff-edge later this year, the government should provide continued support for employers that need it, especially in those sectors that have been hammered by the pandemic.

“Our recovery is a process, not an event. Ministers are seriously misguided if they think we can suddenly revert to business as usual.”

Unite assistant general secretary Steve Turner said: “Industries such as aviation, automotive and hospitality are still on the ropes, hit hard by repeated lockdowns, supply-chain disruption and inconsistent government decisions.

“That is why the union has always argued that the UK furlough scheme needs to match those of our competitor countries and be continued until at least the spring of 2022.

“The country has invested billions in keeping people in work ready for recovery, but, if ministers ‘pull the rug’ from under businesses too soon, jobs will go and our heroic national investment will be wasted.”

Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association general secretary Manuel Cortes said: “This decision from those in power at Westminster, to start phasing out furlough support while we remain in a pandemic, is terrible.

“Removing furlough support for our travel trade smacks of wilful ignorance because the government knows perfectly well that the industry has really not been able to trade in any meaningful way for over a year.”

Chancellor Rishi Sunak said: “These figures show what we always hoped would happen, that the scheme is naturally winding down as the economy reopens, but continuing to support those businesses and employees that need our help.”