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Original poster

Anyone better off since Covid

17 replies

applebee33 · 22/02/2023 13:40

I'm aware the majority of people are suffering and in deep debt since Covid , many of my friends have been hit badly by it , our business both myself and dh run , employs about 12 people has done the best it's ever done since Covid hit, don't want to say as outing but it's construction based .

I am honestly so happy we didn't have to pay anyone off as we have such a great bunch of staff , we take a small wage each and our lives haven't changed much because of company doing well , we have just been using any extra funds to save for the kids or another catastrophe that might mean the arse falls out of our business .

Has anyone else found they've done better be it through your business / jobs or just life in general .

My friends who had to work remotely say they don't want to go back to the office , they are saving on child care and much prefer life since Covid happened .

I just feel there must not be many in the middle , it always seems like people are either really really poor or raking it in .

OP posts:

OnlyFoolsnMothers · 22/02/2023 13:44

Not raking it in but definitely better off- had a longer mat leave with my second due to being able to save more, and my work finally embraced wfh. Just got a new job and my stipulation was 3 days in an office max-
never would I have had those options pre covid.
I am though well aware of my privilege, I was pregnant with my second so didn’t miss lots of people coming round or baby showers, my eldest was too young to have had her education disturbed and no one close to me died. In the bigger picture though I still wish covid hadn’t happened.

Original poster

applebee33 · 22/02/2023 13:55

Yes I was also pregnant and missed out on all those too , kids missed school things /parties , but all in all it worked out better than we had anticipated thank god

OP posts:

LlynTegid · 22/02/2023 14:53

By being able to work from home most of the week I am better off, especially with the ability to do small errands in the week not have to do them on Saturdays. Saved on work clothes and lunches more than the additional energy costs.

I still wish there had never been the pandemic, and especially the 20,000 or so of the deaths that could easily have been avoided.

Chipsahoy · 22/02/2023 16:14

Yes my dh has always worked from home so felt stuck in his job as didn’t want to go back to an office. Now his whole sector is wfh he has taken a job for twice his salary. It also gave us the confidence to leave our home town and move 100s to start a new life in the countryside. We are better off mentally and financially because of covid. We also never caught covid so fortunate we didn’t experience or continue to experience ill health because of it. We are very fortunate

IwasToldThereWouldBeCake · 22/02/2023 16:26

I saved a lot as a result of WFH, not commuting, not eating out. I saved enough to make a big difference 8b my life.

I spoke to a guy whose family own a chain of DIY/Home furnishing shops..... They raked it in between covid DIY and need for beds etc for Ukrainian refugees.

BeetleyCarapace · 22/02/2023 16:31

Not me. I'm still hanging in there (I work for myself) but not doing as well as I was and this year is proving to be especially difficult.

But I'm glad for you — I mean that genuinely — so many people running smaller businesses have struggled and suffered over the last three years it's good to know some are doing well. Good luck to you.

Coffeepot72 · 22/02/2023 16:36

This. And I'm no longer permanently exhausted due to the commute and 'hamster on the wheel' of a Monday-Friday week in the office.

Ilikewinter · 22/02/2023 16:39

It made me get off my arse and get another job.....I worked in retail 🙈. Now I earn more and WFH 3 days a week. Also I never caught covid, despite being a key worker. DH went perm WFH so we got a dog 🐶. I consider myself one of the lucky ones.

evemillbank · 22/02/2023 16:42

Yes I guess I am as I don't have to commute to work anymore now I WFH

FavouriteSlippers · 22/02/2023 16:42

Yes as we took a leap and quit work, to start our own business on lockdown 2.

In lockdown one dh was furlough so he got to be off for months when youngest was born. He had 2 weeks paternity, 1 week holiday then furlough
We got to get the whole house painted and carpeted etc and garden done up.

Apart from the boredom of not doing the normal stuff we did with older ones, theme parks, farms, zoos etc
We were lucky and it didnt affect us financially or anything.

DaphneduM · 22/02/2023 16:45

Both daughter and son-in-law much better off. Son-in-law's pay has increased by 20% and daughter a new job with much better pay and employee benefits (increased employer pension contributions, private healthcare). They both juggle working from home with their office days. We're better off too - husband now has his state pension as well as occupational one. Feel very fortunate that with the present cost of living crisis there's more financial slack for us all.

DaisyDucks · 22/02/2023 17:07

I’m much better off since Covid. Salary has increased by 40%, I’m predominantly working from home so I feel much more relaxed. I can set my own hours. I have more time to go to the gym and I’ve lost weight. I genuinely feel like a new and much more healthy person. I finally have a disposable income so can travel to places that were out of the question a few years ago. I’m grateful for it all and I know how easily things can change but for now I’m going to enjoy it.

nxa · 22/02/2023 17:18

There was a thread like this the other week that got hijacked by some people who got really nasty and angry about it, completely missing the point of the thread and attacking people who dared to say that anything positive had come out of COVID, so I just wanted to warn you about it! But yes, in so many ways I'm better off, and a lot of people I know took a lot of positives out of it. The flexibility of work is the best one.

Crazykefir · 22/02/2023 17:21

This reply has been withdrawn

This message has been withdrawn at the poster's request

DancingDaughter50 · 22/02/2023 17:24

The wfh aspect has been a huge blessing for us!
It's made my life so much easier as dh is able to collect the child nearest home from school.

That means I can concentrate on the one that is nearest me. Infact on the odd day he has to go into the office it's quite stressful!

BashirWithTheGoodBeard · 22/02/2023 17:50

Do you mean because of covid or just since? Because my household lost thousands due to lockdowns, but because of pay rises we now have more income coming in than we did in February 2020. Unfortunately the bills are also higher!

StrikeItMucky · 22/02/2023 18:42

Nope, not us. I work for the NHS and was still working through the lockdowns. As was my DP, albeit from home, for him. Life was very much the same as before covid, as we're not hugely sociable people and have very few extended family members. After I caught covid in late 2021, I developed long covid and had a year off work with it. I feel very lucky to still have a job to go back to. And although it's been slow to feel like my old self again, having time away from work has made me realise just how unappreciated, overworked and unhappy I am at work. It just feels like a chore now and I really don't enjoy it. DP quit his job mid last year, for something less stressful and workplace bullying but is now hating his job too. So we're slightly worse off since covid, due to me feeling like I've aged 20 years, from long covid and both being stuck in jobs we don't enjoy 😕

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