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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To feel that it's unfair that keyworkers cant be furloughed

213 replies

glitterwobbles · 19/05/2020 07:56

Just want to rant mainly at the government. My husband and I are both keyworkers. I have currently moved out of home as have been exposed to covid 19 and didn't fancy taking it home to my family.
Because of this my husband has not been able to work and is on a zero hours contract so no work no pay.
Apparently key workers can not have furlough pay. All we are asking for is 3 weeks pay as I hope to go home at the weekend.
I know its pathetic but I feel let down by the rules. I have continued to work while many around me have gone off with stress. I have not had a day off sick since 2012. My husband is on a zero hours contract as the flexibility has allowed us to manage childcare needs.
I dont want a medal and realise life is hard for lots of us right now but feel financially punished for being keyworkers.

OP posts:
BananaSpanner · 19/05/2020 08:16

I’m also a key worker and I do sympathise. I don’t envy people on furlough though as I think there will be many redundancies moving forward. I would rather be a key worker in this situation. You are taking the hit now but hopefully both of your jobs will be secure when he is able to work again.

Careradvice2019 · 19/05/2020 08:18

Annual leave ? Is that an option . Ssp is £90 something a week so I'm assuming thats out of the question , do you get sick pay ?
I'm furloughed and have been told I have to take one weeks annual leave next week as by the time I go back there are too many staff needing got take holiday and they can't let everyone go back with full holiday entitlement it won't work

AnyFucker · 19/05/2020 08:18

Move back home. I am a frontline NHS worker and no one I know has moved out of the family home. I said at the beginning that doing so would be unsustainable and here you are.

Sistedtwister · 19/05/2020 08:19

From government info page Employees who are unable to work because they have caring responsibilities resulting from coronavirus (COVID-19) can be furloughed. For example, employees that need to look after children can be furloughed.

It's not just for those with no work. Unfortunately it is in flexible. You either are furloughed or not. So the days my key worker oh doesn't work I can work from home and the days he does I can work from home and try to home school dd and slowly loose my mind

IncredibleSulk · 19/05/2020 08:20

It’s all very well saying ‘schools are open for key workers’ but given that a lot of key workers (certainly NHS workers) work unsocial hours then 9-3 at school is not much use. It’s not just school that is affected it’s the out of school care provisions and the fact that a lot will rely on family and friends for childcare which obviously is not an option at present. The flippant ‘well schools are open, what are you complaining about’ type answers really get on my nerves.

CurlyEndive · 19/05/2020 08:20

I don't think the furlough scheme is meant to pay employees who are self isolating (whether a key worker or not)? It's meant to be for employees who can't work because of the current lockdown rules.

fedup2017 · 19/05/2020 08:20

Lolz at "use school childcare"!! How many frontline NHS jobs are 9-3 Monday to Friday
Some people are just hard of thinking.

Agree it must be really difficult if you are both used to working opposite shifts for childcare and now have no extended network to help. I think if this had happened a few years ago when we were both shift workers we would have to negotiate who carries on and who has unpaid leave. Agree it is crap that you are massively out of pocket

Wiaa · 19/05/2020 08:20

None of this makes sense, if you've been exposed you only need to isolate for 2 weeks so wouldn't be long enough for furlough anyway and if you're a keyworker you can get tested so you'd need a max of 7 days whilst arranging test and getting results.

CovidicusRex · 19/05/2020 08:22

But your husband wouldn’t be getting any money off under furlough. Same as anyone else who took time off.

SockYarn · 19/05/2020 08:22

Key workers can be furloughed, it depends what kind of keywork they do. DH is in an industry which is key to national infrastructure, along the lines of ferry ports, trains, airports. As transport has ground to a halt, they don't need as many staff, even though they are a key industry. They have furloughed plenty of staff, but with a proviso that they can call people back in on 48 hours notice if, for example, the train drivers who haven't been furloughed all fall sick at the same time.

rossKemp · 19/05/2020 08:23

@CornishTiger You can tell at lot of these posters aren’t the ones working full on in difficult risky situations

Not true

AnyFucker · 19/05/2020 08:24

Op isn't showing signs of Covid. A decision was made for her to live elsewhere for the duration. The "duration" could be a very long time as Covid is not going anywhere even after lockdown so where do you draw the line ?

Op, did you post about moving out of the family home back then under a different name ?

CandyLeBonBon · 19/05/2020 08:24

I own my own small business and have no govt support op. Some people fall through the cracks. I'd rather be working and earning . It sucks but it's just unfortunate

MrsHuntGeneNotJeremyObviously · 19/05/2020 08:24

Get signed off with stress. You are stressed! I don't think you should be risking taking Coronavirus home to your child. And I don't think it's fair that in being careful, you are financially penalised.

WitchyMoo · 19/05/2020 08:25

Yes waii makes a very good point , can you get tested . My cousin is head of nursing and she says you get tested and only do you test positive you then go off , you may not even have it . My husband and his staff have all been tested and none of them came out positive , they also deal with carehomes too , they all worked while waiting for results
Sounds like you're tired and fed up and I don't blame you

Italiandreams · 19/05/2020 08:26

Most nurseries around here have shut completely so getting children care for pre school age children is quite tricky. It’s a really challenging situation for us all .

Original poster
glitterwobbles · 19/05/2020 08:27

@Winkywoop lazy of course I am. If you call working 12.5 hours in full PPE with minimal breaks going in on days off to support staff team lazy then I am.
I admit I am jealous because I made a choice to protect my partner middle aged man with asthma. Whilst i do this some people are off with anxiety I do feel for them as it's scary for us all. My way to deal with being terrified of killing my family was to move out. So yes I'm jealous
But dont tell me to fuck off as I might just do that and I'm not sure that there are hundreds off nurses waiting to do my job x

OP posts:
yesornoisthatthewaytogo · 19/05/2020 08:29

I know a carer who has been furloughed as she has diabetes.

Figmentofmyimagination · 19/05/2020 08:30

There is no rule that keyworkers cannot be furloughed. It is up to the employer to decide whether to furlough them.

The gov has made it clear that an employer whose workforce is publicly funded should not furlough workers and many of these will be key workers but lots of key workers eg retail staff are in the private sector. They can be furloughed.

The employer does not need to show there is no work for workers before furloughing them. You can be furloughed if you eg can’t work because you are looking after your children, because you are shielding, can’t travel to your work etc etc. The point is that it is up to the employer to decide.

The problem for zero hours contract workers is that as an employer, why would you bother to furlough them? Much more straightforward and risk free simply not to give them any more hours. Otherwise, it begins to look as if they are not ‘zero hour’ workers at all but rather, workers with regular hours but with dodgy ‘zero hour’ contracts.

AnyFucker · 19/05/2020 08:32

Go home, love. You won't "kill your family"

Critical care is going to continue to have Covid cases. Hopefully an ongoing trickle and not a deluge, but still.

In my Trust, people who are reaching burnout (and who can blame them) are offered a break by being deployed to other areas eg. step down wards

Patients are usually testing negative for Covid by then. Speak to your manager and see if you can get home. This is not sustainable.

insancerre · 19/05/2020 08:36

Key workers can be furloughed
I’m a nursery manager and I’m currently furloughed even though my nursery is still open, we obviously are a lot quieter
We also have our casual staff on furlough - we could have just given them no hours but we have them on furlough

RusticaRubra · 19/05/2020 08:38

Different from furloughed, but I do think anyone who has been a key worker through this crisis should get a month off paid or pay in lieu. A lot of people are basically having a long paid holiday and recharging their batteries and it isn't fair.

StripyHorse · 19/05/2020 08:44

Have you spoken to school about your children going in? My understanding is that allowing a key worker on nights to sleep was allowed.

Walkaround · 19/05/2020 08:46

glitterwobbles - now you know why your colleagues have been taking time off with stress. You don’t want to be furloughed - you wouldn’t be able to go in and out of the furlough scheme, you would have to cease working in your job altogether, you can’t use it for a few weeks to get a break and see your family and then go back to work again. You can take time off with stress if things get really bad, though, and you sound seriously stressed.

Gtugccbjb · 19/05/2020 08:46

The issue here is no sick pay. It’s a disgrace that people out working, putting themselves at risk are then asked to go home for two weeks on £90 a week. The Government should have put something in place for this. I’m a keyworker. I will tell you for a fact that when you don’t pay people sick pay they will lie about not being ill because they have to provide for their families.

For all of you sitting at home on full pay etc. Take a moment to think how de valued you feel when you continue to work day after day but know if you catch anything from your workplace you get punished by getting no pay. It’s awful.