to be irrationally annoyed with the furloughed?

[awaywiththecircus]

I know I am but I'm jealous that they have all day to lie in the sun, home educate their dc, bake, sew, watch TV whilst I'm busier than ever trying to do it all whilst working from home.
I heard on the radio it's going to cost £50 billion over 3 months and I feel annoyed that the economy is totally f**d because we're paying everyone's salaries, and they're at home doing nothing.
I also know none of this is anyone's fault and IABU.

It’s not a competition, it’s tough for nearly everyone ... I have been furloughed, I would genuinely love to be at work, I have no DC that need to be home schooled, I am fit and healthy, at least I can keep busy as I do a volunteering role in the community.

And I am very worried about whether I will have a job to return to.

It's all well and good to say people should have savings, but if you or your partner have over a certain amount saved it means you aren't entitled to Universal Credit and other benefits. Sometimes it seems there is no point saving as those who spend it on 'iPhones' will be able to claim UC from day 1 while savers will have to spend their savings first.

I was furloughed before the schools even closed. The company I work for stopped trading as soon as schools closed. September is the best the company is hoping for at the moment, if we have any customers left by then and if there is still a business to run. Yes I’m getting the 80% furlough but I would rather get back to work and I would rather the kids were getting back to school to finish their year before being thrown into the next school year.

I can see how resentment towards the furloughed has built, especially when the weather has been nice. But most furloughed staff are facing an uncertain future with their jobs. The grass isn’t greener.

Maybe job confidence is proportional to the amount of people furloughed in your company.

If you’re one of 20 furloughed and your company employs 100 plus then maybe you should be worried.

I’m furloughed but I’m one of 100 out of 120 employees of the company. Because in the short term all we absolutely need working are a few salesmen, accounts people and warehouse staff - we have good warehouse stocks so don’t currently need any of our purchasing, manufacturing, developments or product staff - long term though, we’ve already been communicated with about the plans for production staff to start returning (socially distant and split shifts to reduce people on site) and the rest of the departments will follow.

Maybe it’s just my industry but an awful lot of companies I know of were effectively mothballed within hours of the government announcing the job retention scheme...these are viable companies who chose for the government (and therefore the taxpayer) to pay the salaries for the next three months rather than eat into their own reserves and assets.

Maybe we should start getting angry about the companies taking advantage of the system rather than angry at the people who have no choice but to be sat at home doing nothing - posts like this from a position of perceived moral superiority because you’re still working do little to help anyone.

I feel annoyed that the economy is totally fd because we're paying everyone's salaries, and they're at home doing nothing

^ This ranks amongst one of the most dense trains of thought Ive heard for a while.

Is it really true that all furloughed employees are at risk of not having jobs to go back to? Surely some are just in industries that can't function at the moment, but where demand will pick back up as soon as the lockdown lifts? Childcare for example?
We've furloughed our nanny since she's live-out and can't come in during the lockdown. I can't work though without her, so I'm not working (freelancer), but we're topping her up to 100%. I am mildly jealous that she's getting this time off, while I'm struggling to work after DC sleep etc. But we need her as soon as the lockdown ends, so her job isn't at risk really - it's just that for as long as the lockdown is in place we can't offer her employment, and this saves us having to unfortunately make her redundant.

I feel annoyed that the economy is totally fd because we're paying everyone's salaries, and they're at home doing nothing

If these companies went bust and all staff made redundant, the government would have to pay all staff redundancy pay and then their benefits, which would be more costly than furlough.

You're lucky that you've been able to do that but many people on very low wages can't

I mean it was part luck and part absolute scrounging, old banger, tiny flat, no new clothes for years, drinking tap water when out for "drinks", Groupon haircuts...

Maybe we should start getting angry about the companies taking advantage of the system

I wouldn’t judge these companies too harshly. We’re only at the very beginning of this downturn and it’s going to be brutal. If they’re protecting themselves for the longer term so that the businesses longer term prospects are improved, that’s probably sensible.

Wow.... would someone actually not save in case they needed Universal Credit one day so it wouldn't be worthwhile saving! No point saving! Hopefully too many people don't think like this....'let's not save in case we need UC and then won't be able to get it'... seems barking mad to me not to want to support yourself if you need to/if an emergency comes up... just spend it all in case you might need benefits! Wow just wow

@ "RefreshingOcean Thu 23-Apr-20 18:52:50
It's all well and good to say people should have savings, but if you or your partner have over a certain amount saved it means you aren't entitled to Universal Credit and other benefits. Sometimes it seems there is no point saving as those who spend it on 'iPhones' will be able to claim UC from day 1 while savers will have to spend their savings first.

I get it.

Grass is always greener though.

I don't think you are being unreasonable to feel this way at times.

Surely some are just in industries that can't function at the moment, but where demand will pick back up as soon as the lockdown lifts?

Holiday package company - no way will we go back to normal anytime soon

but where demand will pick back up as soon as the lockdown lifts?

Like what?

Hairdressers, yes. I’m not sure about much else.

@BeijingBikini Thu 23-Apr-20 19:00:33
"I mean it was part luck and part absolute scrounging, old banger, tiny flat, no new clothes for years, drinking tap water when out for "drinks", Groupon haircuts..."

I think many people don't realise that some people do actually scrimp and cut back to save... others spend... then some in between, then some 'up thread' don't save in case they might need benefits and might have to spend their savings! You just cannot make it up - ridiculous.

Anyway I went off at a tangent - the thread was not about that so enough said. Reminds me of working in debt management - some people really could save but didn't. Oh well such is life.

Unfortunately I suspect that as soon as furlough is lifted and the job retention scheme closes a lot of those people that are sitting at home on reduced wages already are going to end up with no jobs at all.
Widescale job losses and recession is on its way unfortunately some, not all, but some of these people are just temporarily hidden unemployed.

I’ve done nothing but look At furlough for the last three weeks. We have taken a 10% pay cut at work luckily my job and the staff numbers in my area mean I should be fine after all of this but a lot of people aren’t it would be naive to think otherwise

Surely some are just in industries that can't function at the moment, but where demand will pick back up as soon as the lockdown lifts?

Yes there will be some. I'm in law so I really don't know where I stand. Yes law firms will be needed still but how quickly it recovers is another question. It depends how long it takes to get back to normal, whether I'll have a job or not to go back to.

My daughter works in a bar and has been furloughed (lives with boyfriend also furloughed)

While Dh and I (teacher/work in schools) haven't been

I'm just so grateful she's not starving to death/on the streets - it wouldn't occur to me to be envious

She's just terrified she won't have a job to go back to

There is only a very small section of those furloughed who feel they are better off at the moment. The other 95% are either living month to month possibly on NMW and can't afford an 80% reduction in wages, very worried they won't have a job to return back to in what could be an awful recession, usually earn over £30k a year and are loosing an awful amount of money each month that they may need to support themselves and their family. Come Sunday it's due to rain for a week (where I live anyway)- I'm sure the pictures on SM of paddling pools and beers on the garden at 3pm will stop.

Saying on thread subject.... I get what you are saying. I am working harder than ever and still earn the same. However, I have a job so although some are at home baking cakes, painting rainbows and posting on social media their tales of what they are doing in the long run it's much better to have a job/business etc. some of the furloughed may not have a job to return to and furlough might be the slow decent into general benefits for income. If that was the case for me I would be tempted to find another job (if possible) in a safer occupation. Obviously, not possibly for everyone.

I am on furlough whilst others do my job because the selection of who was furloughed was entirely down to one manager who has protected all her cronies.
I am mightily pissed off as there is no doubt at all that redundancies will follow.
Am even more pissed off by the constant posts on MN criticising those furloughed and implying we're on holiday.
I did NOT choose this, ok.
If it is a holiday, it's a really crap one.

There will be a small number of industries that won't be affected by coronavirus/furlough.

But a huge amount will. After all this is over, taxes will go up, the price of goods will probably go up, a lot of people will be out of work. A lot less people will be buying luxuries. That will massively affect the travel industry, hospitality industry, and any industries that sell non essential goods.

Like the OP, I am ashamed to say that I too I have furlough fantasies. I know this is wrong for all the reasons posters say. However, my workload is crippling, worked all through Easter (other than Monday) and with working from home, there is no light relief office interaction brings or colleagues to bounce off or ‘off switch’. I Would like to Chuck it in for my own mental health - So furlough at 80% of pay for a few months and time to recharge my batteries is something like the OPmImam ashamed to say I envy.

I would not dream of saying this to anyone in RL

YABU. I was furloughed today with no notice.When I voiced my concerns there may not be a job to come back to I was basically told there wouldn’t be. They were restructuring and my job would be gone. So I have a matter of a few weeks to find some kind of income. I’m not chilling in the garden with my kids, I am stressed as hell about how I pay my mortgage.

I’m a childminder, so haven’t been furloughed as such, but should qualify for the self employed equivalent scheme. I didn’t ask to be closed down or to stop working. I would have been happy to work all through this but don’t have nay key workers who needed child care. If it’s safe for a school to be open for 20 children, I don’t know why it isn’t safe for me to have 3 other dc in my home?

I get why you are frustrated with the situation though. If it were reversed I would probably be really annoyed at having to work for full pay, while others sit at home for 80%. DH is furloughed but is saving 20% by not paying for fuel, the obligatory coffees from the machine and ‘takeaway friday’.

Do you know what, I’ve been furloughed and I wished I hadn’t been. I’m now worried if I’ll have a job after all this. I wish I was still working, even with a 20% cut, like my still working colleagues are.