Aibu that I should be at work as I can’t from home? (Cleaner)

[dibdobs]

Hi please be kind! I work thirty hours weekly for a family in their country house. When the partial lockdown started my partner asked me not to go to work as he is 63 and a diabetic with high blood pressure. However I can’t stop worrying I will lose my job if I don’t go and on the government website it just says to go to work if you can’t work at home. To me my work isn’t essential but I’m worried they may replace me. So feel I should go back but keep my distance from the family? Just looking for genuine advice really as I o don’t know what I’m meant to do.

I can't really clean my house right now (pregnant, don't want to handle chemicals

OMG. @roarfeckingroar You have to be kidding, surely? What to do you think every other pregnant woman in the country does?

I’m paying my cleaner but asked her not to come and her Facebook page says she’s closed. If she gets the government grant then I’ll review how much I pay her but probably still contribute as 80% of a relatively low wage will still be hard to live on.

But I’m response to the original question (sorry got distracted) I think OP should speak with her employer about the situation and see what they say, she is worried she will lose her job but won’t know until she asks!

roarfeckingroar You don’t want to use chemicals but happy to expose yourself to potentially contracting Coronavirus. I know which option I’d rather take.

Definitely speak to them! I spoke to the lady who runs the cleaning agency I use a fortnight ago and she was asking her clients to consider whether they could still pay, due to worries about what would happen to the business and the cleaners. She was pretty sure then that cleaners would still be able to come, but now they can't. Doesn't matter, I'm still paying. They're good at their job and I'm still on full pay.

To those still paying their cleaner, do you expect any of it back when they claim their 80% from the government?

Not sure the answer, OP. This is a tricky one!

I stopped our cleaner coming but am still paying her what I would have.

To those still paying their cleaner, do you expect any of it back when they claim their 80% from the government?

No I don’t and I’m not sure she will be able to claim it? Her other two cleaning jobs aren’t paying here and she has been furloughed from her main job. I only pay her £100 a month as we only have a small house.

To those still paying their cleaner, do you expect any of it back when they claim their 80% from the government?

No, I don't know the ins and outs of her tax return. No idea if she will claim or not. It's money we've budgeted for, we're still being paid fully. We're well off, she's not so if she makes a profit from it then fair play to her.

I’m heartened to see so many people paying for services while this is going on. We too this view at the beginning - we are still getting our full salaries and saving as only paying 50% nursery fees (we offered to pay full for those, even!) and on fuel and not eating out etc. I really like our cleaner, she does a great job and we’ve become quite good friends over the year and half she has been cleaning for us. I can’t fault her.

I'm paying my cleaner 50% of her money (not full because she's quite flaky and often only comes three weeks in five) and she seems to be very appreciative of it. I doubt she'd be able to claim anything, as it's a cash transaction every week, so if she declares it I'll be surprised.

I’m furloughed, so paying the dog walker 80%. Seems only fair and if everyone did it, people would find this much easier.

@AllForAnEasyLife - you cannot compare cleaning with care work. Care work is absolutely essential. You can do your own cleaning.

Home carers are going into other people’s houses, same with supported living houses

Home carers are essential workers.

"The guidance isn't just that essential workers work here, its anyone who cant work from home"

^ Exactly

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-outbreak-faqs-what-you-can-and-cant-do/coronavirus-outbreak-faqs-what-you-can-and-cant-do

1. Should I stay at home or go to work?

You may travel for work purposes, but only where you cannot work from home.

Certain jobs require people to travel to their place of work
– for instance if they operate machinery, work in construction or manufacturing,
< so not just essential workers >

or are delivering front line services such as train and bus drivers.

Employers and employees should discuss their working arrangements,
and employers should take every possible step to facilitate their employees working from home, including providing suitable IT and equipment to enable remote working

< Work, keeping your job, paying the bills now and later on are essential
There are many people now forced to work in offices or elsewhere without distancing and without being essential

• as the alternative is not paying the bills >

Whether you work is between you and your employer
but as they haven't paid you and another cleaner has been going in,

I suggest you ask what they want you to do
then decide if you wish to do that

To those still paying their cleaner, do you expect any of it back when they claim their 80% from the government?

Nope. I have no idea whether she’ll be able to and I know the money means an awful lot more to her than it does to me.

We’ve told our cleaner not to come until further notice but we are still paying her.

@PegasusReturns I take it that means she is not declaring her income, and will not receive the support that self employed people who do pay tax will.

I only found out yesterday that the guests are NHS workers. Haven't decided if i will be going back.. I am quite annoyed that I wasn't given full info to decide if I was happy to continue tbh..

The law is that everyone can go to work by the way whatever the job unless on a list of banned work or the work could be done from home www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2020/350/regulation/6/made. In some cases with large houses a normally daily nanny or cleaner might even be able to move into the employer's country house for the duration if the cleaner's husband at home is worried about infection.

I won't be going back to the B&B. Am getting quite angry i wasn't told!.