To have not much sympathy?

[WelcomeToTheNorth]

Acquaintance on Facebook. Big ranting post about being made to take annual leave whilst on furlough. Not fair, either furloughed or we’re not, not in the spirit etc etc.

I mean clearly this is to prevent the furloughed employees from coming back to work with a huge stack of annual leave to take. Therefore it is exactly in the spirit of the scheme i.e. ensuring there is a workforce in place when things get moving again.

For background - I am working full time (for 80% pay) with two under-6s. Many of my colleagues have been furloughed (also at 80% - equal contribution and all that 🤨) and we are working flat out to cover it all. My mental health is shot. So yeah do you know what? I am bitter.

I completely understand that people didn’t ask to be furloughed but to be honest (I’ve had a wine or two so forgive me) I feel like people moaning about this sort of thing can do one!

Companies that have staff working flat out to cover those furloughed are abusing the system

Be that as it may, it doesn’t help those of us in that situation 🤷🏻‍♀️

I'm not furloughed but I don't think furlough has been a holiday so far. You can't go to many places, can't go away, can't see family in the normal ways, can't meet up with groups of friends. No cinema, bowling, activities.

I do think as restrictions start to ease it might feel more like a holiday for those furloughed but I wouldn't swap. Being lucky enough to have continued working has saved my mental health, given me structure and routine. I would have been climbing the walls by now if furloughed. I'm bored enough at home some days as it is.

dontdisturbmenow as I said, I'd be happy to take my annual leave while I'm on furlough. But I should be paid at 100% for those weeks, not the 80%. I don't post on social media about this stuff though.

WelcomeToTheNorth but then it's your company that you should be angry with, not the employees.

I can be annoyed with the ones giving it large on social media about how hard done by they are with their annual leave.

While they post from their sunny gardens drinking gin on a Wednesday afternoon.

A bit of sensitivity should be used on social media.

But what do you want us to do, sit in the dark every day and self flagellate?

We should be on holiday now. DH is wfh, I am self employed in hospitality sector so my business is obviously closed (hopefully not permanently . DH's work have said all booked holidays must be taken, and no-one is allowed to roll holiday over into next year. It's annoying - we're spending the next two weeks within 5 miles of home, going for walks, doing DIY etc - but I can understand it; the last thing DH's work needs is for everyone to go back to work then 90% of them to go off on holiday in the first month back. People on furlough need to understand it was either furlough or redundancy and thank their lucky stars.

Just the general piping down about how hard and unfair it is would do for me to be honest.

Our company has forced all holiday to be used now, after they take everyone off furlough in June. Then, it's a max of £30 per day for 8 days then temporary lay off with no pay for up to 13weeks. If you're struggling, they've said just claim UC. Nothing much else they can do and some of us will really struggle but it is what it is. Those of us who will no longer have holiday to take for childcare for the 6 weeks of summer plus various other half terms etc until years end will probably have to take out a loan just to cover childcare fees.

I am stacking my annual leave up and gonna rinse it when I am unfurloughed.
I didn't ask for this and am certainly not taking any when I am at home anyway.

It’s in the rights of the employer to request that annual leave is taken, but it is to be paid at the rate it was acured at ie. 100% prior to furlough. For anyone who has had a pay cut this is the case too.

But it’s annoying if you may need it in the future ie. childcare or would prefer it to be paid out in the case of redundancy ie. less then two years service, or would just like to save it for when you can go on holiday.

I think it’s fair enough, at least in our workplace anyway. The vast majority of employees would have taken leave at some point in the last 3 months- but miraculously it was all cancelled at the start of lockdown, as obviously people are reluctant to use it when they can’t go anywhere.

The company are now asking people still on furlough to take a certain amount of leave per week going forwards. The idea is that nobody has stacks of it when they come back- fundamentally, we need a functioning business, not one where 100 employees all have 25 days of leave to use up when lockdown ends.

fundamentally, we need a functioning business, not one where 100 employees all have 25 days of leave to use up when lockdown ends.

Very true. When people take leave in my team it puts the rest under a bit more pressure. If we all saved it up we'd then have weeks and weeks of being short-staffed.

I am actually working full-time from home, so have booked a week off because I need a break. Even if I can't go anywhere else.

As an employer I wouldn't make the staff use their annual leave. The Govt is paying towards the wages to keep the businesses afloat and to keep jobs. It's not paying it to reduce the cost of annual leave.

A lot of people count on their annual leave for childcare in the school holidays and family events

Lockdown on furlough is not a holiday. Yes,some people have been able to drink gin, in their gardens...but it's still not a holiday.

I can understand having to juggle A/L do not everyone is off straight afterwards, but they need to take into account the reasons people have leave booked (childcare/booked holidays that can still go ahead).

I totally understand it must be crap to be working if others are furloughed, but if you're working a lot more to cover others work then you need to speak to your manager & get others back from furlough. Not blame those furloughed,even when they're crass enough to oust on SM drinking gin on a Wednesday afternoon!

This is such a difficult question. If parents are saving holiday to cover school holidays I think that should be allowed. I also think if you've got holiday already booked for Nov/Dec or whatever you shouldn't have to change it.

If you had holiday booked for a time that had been part of furlough then unfortunately yes companies will probably need people to take that as planned. I'm not sure about insisting people take holiday if they didn't have anything booked, but people will have to accept that they might not be able to take holiday at their chosen time when things are back to normal. You might end up with a week in Nov when it's raining.

We have decided that those furloughed will take one week of annual leave in June, as we are unlikely to return until at least September/October and holiday year runs to Dec, if they haven't taken any yet we will be mandating they "take" 75% of annual leave apart from the compulsory Christmas ones prior to restarting. They are on 100%. I'm the only one still working

@WelcomeToTheNorth

I quite like the pro rata suggestion.

I know that they didn’t ask for it in many cases. I’m just done with the suggestion that it’s not a holiday because that’s exactly what it is. People who are still working have to home school etc too.

It's not a holiday op. My DH was put on furlough and now he is being made redundant, same as a lot of other people. The furlough scheme is worrying for a lot of people who would rather be working and are now at risk of losing their job.

You are creating the divide and you are the one sounding entitled to me. Maybe be grateful you have a secure job in a time like this when many are concerned. Or I imagine you are likly happy my DH has been made redundant because he was one of the "evil furloughed"?

@Waxonwaxoff0

I'm furloughed and I can't get worked up about annual leave. I was supposed to have a week off at Easter and this week off as annual leave, I'm not bothered if I can't take it later in the year. I'll be happy to have a job to go back to!

The only thing that is a bit dodgy is that I've only been receiving furlough pay for the 2 weeks I had booked off. If my employers wanted me to take the annual leave they should have topped those weeks up to 100%. Although at the moment they can't afford to do that as business is bad. If/when I go back to work I'll have a chat with them about it.

Please stop creating a divide between the furloughed/non furloughed though. I did not ask for this, this is not a holiday, every day I'm consumed with anxiety that I won't have a job to go back to and I would rather be at work.

I'm afraid though that as far as majority see it, the furloughed have had a free ride, aka holiday. You may not perceive it that way, but I bloody do, when I have remained working, have some redundancy concerns and home schooling on top of shielding. Yes there's a divide. Those who are exhausted from juggling it all when working and those who are sat cushty on 80-100% pay, enjoying the sun/beaches /gardening /dying/home baking etc

@Coronabored

I understand the frustration at being furloughed, but if everyone takes leave once your company should be in recovery mode (and once the furlough scheme has ended) don't you think that might make the company's position even more precarious, and potentially force job cuts?

This post is exactly how I feel.

I dont think people are fully grasping the seriousness of this from an economic point of view.

I'd rather take annual leave and have a bloody job after this ends than not. In all their moaning, do they not realise that if companies dont try to protect themselves a bit they are likely to fold and then everyone will be without a fcking job. Money doesnt just flow in from nowhere, it has to be learnt, not just by the employees but by the company aswell.

*earnt not learnt

www.independent.co.uk/life-style/coronavirus-holiday-dates-pandemic-can-i-carry-over-a9439811.html

Our work is following these government guidelines and allowing us to roll over untaken leave for the next 2 years to stop holiday requests en-masse once restrictions are lifted. Maybe ask your companies why they are not considering this?

I agree that people should be more sensitive on social media. However I dont want to use my holiday during furlough, my holidays are usually used in one 2 week block where we travel 8 hours and spend time with family, I currently have no idea when we will see them so want some holiday kept so I can at some point this year, being told tough shit would not be good for my MH. The rest i use during school holidays for childcare which I might need in the summer/autumn half term/christmas