Value of industry claims rocketed 116% in December

The number of construction employees currently on furlough is increasing, according to the latest HMRC statistics.

In construction, the number of furloughed staff peaked on 14 April with 723,600 people furloughed, with this falling to 130,700 at 31 October.

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Source: Shutterstock

Construction firms more than doubled the amount of claims they made in December last year from the previous month

But HMRC said this figure increased to 169,700 at 30 November and provisional estimates showed by the end of December it had risen again to 193,400. The December figure represents 15% of the sector鈥檚 workforce.

This was in keeping with wider figures, with the data showing that furloughing of staff across all sectors, bar mining and quarrying, increased between October and December.

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According to the figures, 75,600 construction employers were using the scheme at the end of November 鈥� a take up rate of 33%. In November, the industry made claims of 拢161m.

The provisional figures for December showed this rose to 79,300, or 34% of employers, while the value of claims increased 116% to 拢349m.

The latest data also shows what proportion of roles were fully furloughed and which were partially furloughed.

In November, 120,000 construction positions were fully furloughed, while 49,400 were partially furloughed.

In December, these figures increased to 134,700 and 57,900 respectively.

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