I work in a small company which has luckily kept trading all through the lockdown.
About 1/4 of the staff have been working FT while the rest have been furloughed.
However the 1/4 that are in are now getting burnt out and just generally exhausted trying to do the work of all the furloughed staff.
Is it fair to ask the boss if we can swap with the furloughed staff, so we get a break and they can keep in touch with the business?
We could take it in turns (1 week on, 1 week off) we all do the same work and our boss would be there to oversee everything.
At the moment the people who were originally furloughed (and have been for 8 weeks) mostly chose to be furloughed.
I chose to come in, I believed the company would go under and we would all lose our jobs if I didn't.
The people who are furloughed jobs are safe because me and the few others who are in are keeping the company profitable, and they will be coming back when they want to (eg when the gov ends furlough).
I don't think that's right, but that's how the scheme has been designed.
Now I am starting to regret my decision, work is extremely stressful, and the workload is ridiculous.
My boss doesn't care about my health or wellbeing, but I do.
The company is in good shape and doing very well during lockdown, hopefully we can ride out the recession too when that hits.
I'm neglecting my health, my family and my home and the sacrifice I feel is not appreciated.
Shall I ask my boss to timetable us so we all get a chance to work & rest?
The people who are furloughed won't be happy with this because they believe they get to choose, not my boss.
I can easily afford to live on 80% of my salary if I was furloughed, especially short term, as my commute is expensive and my partner has been working too in a secure job.