to think a lot of people are going to look for any excuse not to go back into work when restrictions start to be lifted?

[wakeupitsabeautifulmorning]

Already seeing it on a few threads this morning. I think a lot of people have quite enjoyed being off work and will try their best not to rush back. Or am I being sceptical?

I'm anxious about going back. I have asthma and am in the vulnerable group. I only narrowly missed the criteria to be in the shielding group. A friend of mine has much milder asthma than me and she has been ill with Covid-19 for 7 weeks now, including 2 weeks in hospital as she needed oxygen. She is expected to be off work for another 4 weeks.

I can easily work from home. I'm an office based key worker and have been WFH since a few days before lockdown. My office is in central London so I have a long commute on a crowded train, and a trip on the tube to get there.

There is no need for me to be there straight away as I can work effectively at home and am currently doing so.

DH and have practiced very stringent social distancing. We haven't been to a shop for 7 weeks. We have survived on existing food*, online deliveries, and careful rationing. Sadly I need to venture to a pharmacy soon for asthma meds.

*I have other disabilities so I always have full cupboards in case of flare ups

I fear the government will be put under pressure to ease restrictions and will do so too early. Their actions to date have not inspired confidence.

@SweatyAmy can you get your pharmacy to deliver or ask someone on the Next Door App - we have masses of volunteers locally just itching to help - all organised through the town council.

I agree with you Noforsale. i have a better balance. I like wfh in one respect ie. I worked full time and long commute door to door. I love getting things done in house in week and not just weekends. I do make sure my work is done first. Just have more time to do house stuff when not travelling. I have an teenage child though so if I have to I will volunteer to go back if schs not back as no childcare to sort. Dh front line worker. Looking forward too to dressing up a bit too. Went in my work bag today for first time in ages and found an apple!!! I will as if can wgh say 1 day a week when its all over.

I’ve noticed a huge improvement in air quality, I can see for miles where I live now. I think it would be nice if people could stay at home to work and get off the treadmill of long commutes and being busy being busy. If anything this has shown us that most people don’t “need” to be in an office at all.

We have had lots of enquiries from patients trying to work out if they are safe to go back to work, and yes in some cases trying to find ways to avoid it without a good medical reason. I’d say it roughly falls into 3 categories.

The first are low risk, well people who are genuinely anxious- in the vast majority of cases overly so, in terms of their health conditions (if they have any). The majority (not absolutely everyone, no system is perfect) of people who need to be shielding or following strict social distancing have already been contacted (Government letter and/or GP). If you aren’t in that category, the likelihood is that there is no medical reason that you cannot be at work, if required, provided appropriate safety measures are in place. I think there is a level of anxiety which is misplaced/over the top. In some cases bordering on hysteria. My experience is that often those with the least case to be anxious are the most anxious.

The second group are genuinely concerned they are at higher risk than they’ve been assessed as. We’re all more than happy to talk it through with them.

The third group are actively looking for a reason not to go back to work. It is often driven by fear and anxiety, but they have no reason to be shielding and so if they cannot work from home or work in a key service they have to either go to work or discuss with their employer being redeployed/taking paid or unpaid leave etc. They waste quite a bit if medical time with multiple calls, wanting letters that they don’t warrant etc. I have to admit finding most of this group a bit irritating, they often try to exaggerate things but seem equally happy for others to be putting themselves at risk when they aren’t prepared to run themselves. They are also the most demanding of services.

The last category aren’t the majority- but are a significant minority- I’d say 20-30% of the enquiries. They are also the ones who take up the most time.

@jacks11 it's hard to judge properly from MN - but there does seem to be heightened sense of anxiety on here. The GOV ramped up this fear to ensure lockdown was adhered to properly - it'll be a bigger job convincing people it's safe out there. You only have to remember the post about the woman who asked whether it was ok to go exercising twice in an isolated area to get a taste of the hysteria that seems to have taken over the whole country.

I'm back in the office when they want me, but if my kids are at home what can I do!

@boylovesmeerkats I think that's why is makes more sense to get the kids back to school first and then open up businesses.

It's very hard to go from "if you visit your sister and have a cup of tea 2m apart in her front garden you are killing people" to "off you go and squeeze on the the tube to get to work, or are you too lazy?"

It's very hard to go from "if you visit your sister and have a cup of tea 2m apart in her front garden you are killing people" to "off you go and squeeze on the the tube to get to work, or are you too lazy?" I agree - it's going to cause massive problems going forward. There will be serious trust with the belief in Gov recommendations. Easy to raise anxiety and scare the shit out of people - harder to reassure that everything will be OK. People want zero risk and that is not going to happen.

It's an interesting comment OP, I wonder how many of those finding excuses not to go back to work are not sticking to the isolation guidance and itching to go and socialise with friends and family?

Definitely op, I know people who are furloughed on 80% which isn’t much less than they were making working who are loving not having to work

Once again, what is wrong with that exactly? Individuals can't choose to be furloughed, that is an employers decision. Why shouldn't people be enjoying paid time off in the middle of a global pandemic? I did ask OP this but she/he didn't bother answering, just not getting why people shouldn't be enjoying a break form work?

Human nature won’t have changed.
So some people will be zooming back to work, some will go with reservations, some will fight against it due to anxiety, and some just don’t want to work!
The thread I remember on here was he one where someone left some brownies on a doorstep for a friend and they were accused of trying to kill them.
But again, that’s human nature.

I know of quite a few public sector workers sitting at home in full pay who will try everything possible not to return to work because they are skivers

I think some of the expectations on here totally unrealistic. Even when restrictions start to be relaxed you aren't going to be able to go out to pubs, clubs restaurants etc.

Do none of you remember the threads on here before lockdown? Every single one was the opposite of this - people were screaming for lockdown, as they had done in Ireland and Europe, because we could see the scenes unfolding there and knew that it was starting to happen here.

As soon as lockdown is released our numbers will start to increase. I've been seeing lots of drs and nurses talking on social media and they are exhausted. Many of them have left their homes and families to live in hotels in order to keep their families safe. How on earth can we risk a second wave so quickly after this and expect the NHS to ramp back up to cope with it but this time with a depleted and exhausted staff?

There are also thousands of patients waiting to have surgery and other treatment that has been postponed due to Covid. Surely we need to have some time to get back to normal for them before we hit the NHS with the second wave?

I cannot see lockdown easing before we have reliable and fast testing available plus a reliable tracking app in place, that the majority of people will use (they said 90% yesterday). People being desperate for this to end doesn't make the practical problems of Covid just disappear. I suppose government could give on to pressure and just let us out to do what we want but you can't at the same time expect any kind of medical treatment. It just would not be possible.

You can't be here calling for lockdown to be lifted and then in a few weeks screaming because someone you love is infected and there is no medical care available. Yes, people under 40 might not be dying in significant numbers but people under 40 are getting it and are getting very ill with it. They are needing to be admitted to hospital for oxygen and other supportive treatments. Yes, they recover and leave hospital but they still needed to be there in the first place. How many of them fully recover remains to be seen.

I think it's foolish to base risk to younger people only on death rates. You need to look at home many younger people required hospital admission to figure out the risks.

And I find the attitude that people over 50, or those with chronic illness are surplus to requirements just abhorrent.

@BlueGheko that wasn’t the point I was trying to make, the government are going to have to do some serious back peddling to get SOME people to go back to work who are basically only not wanting to go back because they prefer being at home being paid to do nothing, not because they are scared of the virus

Especially where I am, rurally with very little public transport so there isn’t that issue

I think a lot of people will be working to pay the bills and all unnecessary shit will be cut out of their lives to create a simpler less stressful way of life. Many realised just how little value their employer placed on their well being and literally put their lives at risk. Why would you hurry back to making that company money

I know someone who have been asked to go back to work and are moaning as they want to make the most of being furloughed on 80% for as long as possible. ‘Why would I go back when I’m getting paid to stay home and watch Netflix?’

I would love to be back to work! I miss my job so much, and I’m not cut out for being a SAHP.

My team are all working effectively from home and going the extra mile to support one another and make sure our service Standards do not drop. We have just started talking about the return to the office. If the 2m rule continues then only half of us can be in the office at once to begin with. There are two big impediments to people coming back into the office with the main one being that people don’t want to go on public transport (bus, train or tram) so we need to revisit office parking arrangements. The second impediment is what will happen with the schools and the wrap around care; we have been warned that it is unlikely children will be in Monday - Friday as only half the pupils will be able to be in school at any one time due to space constraints and this will affect after school care too. Secondary pupils are clearly fine to be left home alone and go to school themselves but primary Pupils can’t be.
This is not laziness it’s quite the opposite - everyone is just trying to juggle lots of things in the new normal.

I think a lot of people will be working to pay the bills and all unnecessary shit will be cut out of their lives to create a simpler less stressful way of life.

I think the opposite - people will have realised how fragile their situation is and many will try to build some safety net and try never to be in that position again. A bit like real "preppers", the opposite of panic buyers, who never want to run out of essentials.

I'm WFH and getting a lot done not slacking. Its definitely more relaxing than getting dressed up and out of the house and commuting for an hour each way by crowded bus and tube. I miss being out and about and sitting with my colleagues but I don't relish the thought of public transport. I can't see how it would work with social distancing. I never get a seat either way to work, its always rammed.

My work are looking at ways to segment coming into the office - by function, team or whether you can walk to work. They are also looking at staggering hours or going in part time. But the office, lifts, corridors and staff cafe are the least of the problem - its getting into central London thats the problem. And even if all employers are encouraged to stagger work times and we all wear masks I just don't believe social distancing will be achievable. It will still be packed.

I'm thinking about the options:

• walking would take 2 hours 22 minutes (it would actually be longer coming home as I live on top of steep hills)
• electric bicycle - but I've never fancied taking my life in my hands on such busy London streets
• moped - see above.

Not all of us are malingerers.

@BlueGheko
Problem is the big picture. A lot of people won't have a job to go back to or will walk straight into a redundancy selection. They're just a bit naive and don't realise this yet. I'm already in this position as are several of my friends.

Furlough is a good thing, but isn't the only cost to a business. You can't pay out with nothing coming in.

I love WFH. My commute to work is usually 45-60 mins so I’ve got loads more time back each day. I’m also saving a fortune in petrol and parking costs. I do miss my colleagues (well some of them!) but I’d prefer not to go back to being back in the office full time.

I’ve been really productive WFH despite working on a small laptop when I usually have dual monitors. I think my employers are now looking into offering more home working now but if they don’t I’m going to put in a flexible working request to do 2 days from home - I can’t see how they could say no now it’s proven we can do it.

I can understand why people aren’t in a rush to go back to public transport and busy offices though!

the government are going to have to do some serious back peddling to get SOME people to go back to work who are basically only not wanting to go back because they prefer being at home being paid to do nothing

Not really, the furlough scheme will end, employees will be called back and those that refuse will be in breach of their employment contracts and sacked I expect.

In the case of companies not surviving the pandemic well yes people will lose jobs, the furlough scheme is just a sticking plaster for some sectors, it's not difficult to work out which sectors and if I worked in say hospitality or tourism for example then I'd be spending my furlough time looking at other ways to earn a living. I find it hard to believe that the majority are so naive that they don't realise their jobs are at risk. Like I said being furloughed is not a personal choice and yes I'm sure I'd be enjoying it a lot less if my job wasn't secure.