Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Flip

1 2 3

Original poster

To be thinking of doing this? Blue Badge related

60 replies

Bourdic · 21/01/2018 19:15

On my FB timeline today up came a link to the Independent’s story on the possible extension to the blue badge scheme. The comments took my breath away with their hatred, bitterness,lies, misinformation about blue badges and disabled people! One of the posters is a member of a regulated health profession and has put on her fb Page where she works. The client group she works with are likely to be blue badge holders.. I want to email her employer in the morning about this - shall I?

OP posts:

BumpowderSneezeonAndSnot · 21/01/2018 19:18

Yes you absolutely should

SnowannaRainbow · 21/01/2018 19:19

Depends, what exactly did she say?

Bogmoppit · 21/01/2018 19:25

Yes you should. You will get people telling you to butt out and myob but you really shouldn't. I can't remember where I heard it - possibly talk radio this week, but an employee of PIP/DLA assessment dept was crowing how much she hated people who got these benefits when they shouldn't and she couldnt chose to not go to work so why should they. It was so depressing. She took so much pride in turning people down. IMO they should be neutral and not gave an agenda. And certainly not go into it with bitterness towards disability clamimants. I know some people commit fraud. But equally so many kids are turned down who desperately need it.

When you see threads/replies/comments from people who work with the disabled and it gives a snapshot into their obvious contempt and dislike of this demographic, as a parent of a disabled child, it fills you with hopelessness and bleakness. What chance have they got if so many professionals dealing with them think they are a waste of space and resources.

KayaG · 21/01/2018 19:25

Why not just mind your own business?

You don't know her or her circumstances. Someone who actually knows her may take her to task about it or even report her. Or maybe her opinion is seen as valid by some.

Bogmoppit · 21/01/2018 19:31

@SnowannaRainbow
@KayaG
Then she should not be working with these people. Do you not understand how unprofessional and inappropriate she is being?

I used to work with people who were very unwell. Often terminal. If I had voiced negative opinions about any aspect of the support or treatment they received, or indeed how I felt about them as a whole, I would have been crucified. Quite rightly. People would have judged me. No doubt I would have been sacked and taken off my professional register.

But it seems totally acceptable for people who work with the disabled to make unkind, ignorant and unprofessional statements. I find it incredible. The comments that you don't know the full picture/maybe she was right/having a bad day.
None of this excuses her behaviour.
Do your job and shut the fuck up. And if you dislike disabled people so much that you can't keep off social media and spouting your vile views? Get another job.

SnowannaRainbow · 21/01/2018 19:33

Do you not understand how unprofessional and inappropriate she is being?

Without knowing what the actual comment made was, no. This is why I was asking the OP for more information.

BlondeB83 · 21/01/2018 19:34

Which comment?

OnionKnight · 21/01/2018 19:35

I'd do it, if she was stupid enough to post a hateful comment like that then she deserves it.

Also, her colleagues may have noticed if she has any on her friends list.

Tara336 · 21/01/2018 19:37

I think it would depend what was said

Piffle11 · 21/01/2018 19:38

I'd say do it: how can this person be impartial and take into consideration all the facts when they are clearly so against the people they are employed to assess/assist? @Bogmoppit I completely agree with you: it seems that the disabled are the minority that it's still ok to bash ... slag off any LGBT person or ethnic minority person and you would be out on your ear (rightly), but the disabled ... fair game.

HelenaDove · 21/01/2018 19:51

Someone like that shouldnt be in the job. YANBU

Saying that many housing officers should not be in the job either because many see tenants with disdain. Ours told my DH by tort notice. that unless he got rid of his mobility scooter it would be taken away and destroyed/sold. The housing manager above him said that this was "policy"

tbf they are now looking into putting up a storage space for DHS scooter but they should not have approached it the way they did initially. They will never admit that though.

KayaG · 21/01/2018 19:54

We don't know what she said and some of you think she should be sacked?

Ridiculous.

Marriedwithchildren5 · 21/01/2018 19:59

She's entitled to her opinion regardless of what yours is. Take it up with her on Facebook. Emailing her manager is a cheap shot!

FayJay · 21/01/2018 20:01

You need to tell us exactly what she said OP. Otherwise it’s impossible to give an option.

HelenaDove · 21/01/2018 20:01

Entitled to her opinion? Would you say the same if it was racism or homophobia?

sayanythingelse · 21/01/2018 20:04

I wouldn't message her employer.

I work in social media for a large well known company. We get people messaging us regularly with screenshots of things that people have said online that someone has taken offence to. We just send the screenshot to the person in questions manager and ask them to review their social media policies and remove their place of work from Facebook.

I find it quite petty really, it's essentially telling on them because you don't agree with their opinion.

LemonSqueezy0 · 21/01/2018 20:05

Yes, you should OP. She will have the opportunity to defend her comments to her employers. It is no-ones problem but her own if they prove indefensible...

MeadowHay · 21/01/2018 20:13

I think you should do it as well - as a disabled person who has previously been in receipt of PIP, and is now still waiting for a tribunal for a claim I put in in September 2017. I've faced prejudice from many people, including people are the council offices who wrongly denied me a disabled person's travel card - actually it was a staff member who wasn't even allowed to make that decision, they were wrong anyway, and made rude, disaparaging comments which showed they had no understanding of disability - I left very distressed with my very angry DH, I had to tell my support worker about it and she came with me to get it another time, that time a different member of staff who had not been trained correctly attempted to deny it to me as well but my support worker had e-mails from the boss with her to show the correct policies and that thankfully made them sort it out. The original staff member was apparently spoken to as well, my support worker complained on my behalf - I did say despite her ignorant comments I actually didn't want for her to necessarily be disciplined in any way, but that the staff there clearly needed better training on disability issues and the disabled person's travel card given both times we went they acted erroneously.

It is so painful when you're humiliated enough as a disabled person to need access to these things in the first place, and then to face prejudice and hatred from people working in those services. That woman is, most generously, requires better training.

Marriedwithchildren5 · 21/01/2018 20:26

Entitled to her opinion? Would you say the same if it was racism or homophobia?
??? This is about a government scheme. Some people will be for it. Some against. It's that simple. Are you saying someone disagreeing is on a par with racial and homophobic attacks. You don't even know what the comment is yet and you're already on a crusade!!

HelenaDove · 21/01/2018 20:32

Married..............disabled people and their carers come across these attitudes time and time again.

UpstartCrow · 21/01/2018 20:34

Yes you should. Most people are at least clued up enough to know your employer will have rules about bringing the department/company into disrepute.

Marriedwithchildren5 · 21/01/2018 20:48

Helena you have no argument from me on that. My main point is that as it stands there is no law against disagreeing with a scheme (which, btw, I believe in and do support) If you're going to take issue on a comment made on social media follow it through.

EilaLila · 21/01/2018 20:56

Um without knowing what was said, you cannot compare this to racism or homophobia. It’s ok for HCPC to politely and non-discriminatorily disagree with government schemes. I mean, I think it’s foolish and I wouldn’t do it but assuming she wasn’t offensive, she’s not doing anything wrong in terms of her professional status. If she was being offensive and disablist, I would go ahead but OP hasn’t clarified.

retirednow · 21/01/2018 21:00

Can't you just report it as inappropriate to fb, do you know the person, they might not be a health worker.

Voice0fReason · 21/01/2018 22:46

She's entitled to her opinion regardless of what yours is
And if she voices that opinion in public, she might just be held accountable for it.

OP, I would have a really close look at exactly what she wrote. If it is hateful against disabled people then yes, report it.

Flip

1 2 3