furlough

American  

[fur-loh] / ˈfɜr loʊ /

noun

1. Military. a vacation or leave of absence granted to an enlisted person.

2. a usually temporary layoff from work.

   Many plant workers have been forced to go on furlough.

3. a temporary leave of absence authorized for a prisoner from a penitentiary.

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verb (used with object)

1. to grant a furlough to.

2. to lay (an employee or worker) off from work, usually temporarily.

furlough British  

/ ˈfɜːləʊ /

noun

1. leave of absence from military duty

2. a temporary laying-off of employees, usually because there is insufficient work to occupy them

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verb

1. to grant a furlough to

2. to lay off (staff) temporarily

Usage

What’s the difference between furlough and layoff? A furlough is a temporary release of a worker from their job, typically with the expectation that they will be asked to return. A layoff is usually a permanent removal from a job.Both words can also be used as verbs. An organization can furlough employees or lay off employees. The adjective forms are furloughed and laid off. A furlough typically involves an employer requiring an employee to stop working for a period of time during which they will not get paid—though furloughed workers sometimes keep their benefits, such as health insurance. Furloughs can happen during government shutdowns or when a company does not need certain employees for a certain period of time but expects to need them back after that period ends.The word layoff is typically used in the context of a company permanently letting go workers due to economic reasons (such as not being able to afford to pay them) as opposed to performance reasons (employees let go for poor performance are typically said to have been fired).Here’s an example of furlough and layoff used correctly in a sentence.Example: A furlough is not ideal, but at least it’s temporary—the company is doing it to avoid layoffs.Want to learn more? Read the full breakdown of the difference between furlough and layoff.

Other Word Forms

• prefurlough noun

Etymology

Origin of furlough

First recorded in 1615–25; variant of earlier furloff, furlogh, from Dutch verlof “dismissal, permission to leave,” appparently from Middle Low German vorlōf, noun derivative of vorlöven “to permit (to leave),” blend of vor- for- and erlöven “to allow, permit” ( a- ³ ( def. ), leave ² ( def. ) ); cognate with German erlauben, verlauben, Gothic uslaubjan, Old English ālīefan “to allow, permit”; current pronunciation by association with dough, etc.

Example Sentences

The 44-year-old had been unable to find other work after getting furloughed and her husband, also a government contractor, was hunting for a second job to pay the bills.

From The Wall Street Journal

In August, Spirit filed for bankruptcy protection and has slashed routes, relinquished gates to legacy airlines, and furloughed more than 2,000 pilots and flight attendants.

From The Wall Street Journal

Worker furloughs, increased worker payments for healthcare, and other options could start to make a dent.

From The Wall Street Journal

Most consumer prices in October won’t be published since furloughed employees at the the Bureau of Labor Statistics could not collect the data.

From MarketWatch

Even though she wasn’t furloughed during the shutdown, she estimates the risk of job loss now at around 10% or less.

From The Wall Street Journal