Retraining revolution planned to mitigate further job losses

MINISTERS are drawing up plans for a retraining “revolution” to help tackle a second wave of job losses, amid fears that over two million more workers could be unemployed by the autumn.

No10, the Treasury and the Department for Work and Pensions are preparing for large-scale redundancies when the Government ends the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme for furloughed workers.

Boris Johnson has warned firms against “using furlough cynically to keep people on their books and then get rid of them”, insisting: “We want people back in jobs.”

But ministers are working on proposals to help those who are made redundant to retrain to work in other areas or industries – for example, allowing someone who worked in a warehouse to train as an accountant.

Proposals under consideration include providing workers with an education allowance to carry out training at further education colleges or elsewhere.

In May, Rishi Sunak announced that the £100billion furlough scheme would be wound down over the summer, with businesses having to share the cost of subsidising up to 80 per cent of individual workers’ wages. Ministers fear an additional 2.5million people could be left unemployed when the scheme ends in October.

A Government source said: “We’re facing a wave of unemployment not seen in this country for many years.

“So there is now a considerable focus on retraining and re-skilling those who may lose their jobs in the coming months, to match where new demand in the labour market will be.”

Separately, firms have been told the Government wants to prioritise infrastructure projects that can be completed in 18 months.

The disclosure comes after this newspaper revealed that Mr Johnson had ordered ministers to speed up the construction of new hospitals and other major infrastructure projects as part of a blueprint to “rebuild Britain” in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. The work would lead to 40 new hospitals by 2030.