I'm an experienced highly qualified Early Years Educator and at work today at a creche I spent approx 3 hours deep cleaning as per current regs - I think this is neither sustainable nor desirable AIBU

[Germolenequeen]

AS ABOVE

@sheepisheep

Isn't it funny that the majority of workplaces being forced to clean regularly are also the workplaces most often worked in by women?

Can't help but feel that if banks or offices were affected to the same degree as nurseries and schools, there would be more support from the government for providing cleaning materials and manpower....

We've had the same discussion in our staff room this week, and came to the same conclusions.

Some settings seem to be going way above and beyond the guidance. Blowing whistles and handwashing every twenty minutes? Completely unnecessary. Deep cleaning also not required regularly. I have been really shocked to see how the guidance has been interpreted and the things I have read that I am supposedly absolutely to do or not to do. Yes, we have done enhanced cleaning and handwashing, but not to these ridiculous degrees. Our setting remained relatively normal, which was by far the best thing for everyone involved.

We’re all having to do extra stuff this year. Suck it up, Buttercup. 2020 doesn’t care about your CV

Suck it up?

Not everyone is actually. What I’ve seen is key workers being stretched thin, many low paid workers losing jobs, NHS staff stretched and put at risk with care staff the same.

CV has been more shit for those who are least able to deal with it. Suck it up????

Sounds a bit overkill.
I'm a nurse seeing dozens of patients a day in one room, often elderly or vulnerable. We have a packet of wipes to clean the couch, desk and chair after each patient. Takes about a minute.
No deep clean at the end of the day either.

We’re all having to do extra stuff this year. Suck it up, Buttercup. 2020 doesn’t care about your CV.

No she shouldn't suck it up. I have two DC in nursery. I would far rather the staff were doing their normal brilliant job of playing with the children, teaching them things, comforting them and everything else, bot spending hours fucking about with disinfectant.

I'm not sure about three hours cleaning however more handwashing and cleaner toilets are a good thing surely? Nobody likes picking up six bugs per winter do they?!

Secondary teacher here. We've received guidance for September that all kids should hand sanitise when they enter the room. Fine. But then I'm also supposed to wipe down the 15 desks and 30 chairs in the small gap between lessons. If they've all cleaned their hands, unless they actively cough or sneeze onto the desk, why? And given that kids WILL dick about, play with unsanitised footballs at break and borrow pens from each other without thinking, it's largely pointless. There is a balance to be struck and this isn't it. It's not about status or not wanting to clean, I just massively resent spending time on pointless tasks that could be spent marking or planning decent lessons (for both classroom and online as we'll be teaching in parallel for kids not returning for any reason).

@WeMarchOn

Cleaning? What cleaning? God forbid anyone getting their hands dirty esp a highly educated professional! 🙄

She's in early years at a creche, so the hands dirty is going to be taken care of either way. Perhaps not the best choice of phrase for the sentiments you were expressing!

But you're right OP, I'd rather you were playing with my child instead of helping allow the government to pretend no funding for cleaning is needed.

So you think maintaining a clean environment in line with current guidelines isn't your job?

Oh and I have NEVER had a paid lunch break.

NHS consultant here.
We are doing our own blood tests for patients rather than send them to phlebotomy as well as cleaning and airing consultation rooms between patients. All in PPE.
It's a far cry from our normal working conditions, we are doing it to keep everyone as safe as possible.

We don't want to go back to March

Virtually everyone who's been fortunate to not lose their job is being expected to work in new ways. It won't last forever.

So we are seeing 4 patients a clinic, rather than 10, we know it's not efficient. We are only bringing those we really need to see and doing the rest by phone or video link. Please bear with us like everyone else we are doing our best. Off to work now.

It’s but that cleaning is beneath anyone, it’s that other things are not being done because of if. I don’t understand how people don’t understand that! The poor children are missing out. Completely understand your point OP. It’s so frustrating, I don’t understand why more help with money for cleaning has not been provided as it’s such a huge part of the prevention of spread.

I don't think anyone is saying it's beneath them or that they won't do more or extra things in this current situation. It's just that some of it is OTT and not going to add any benefit. Since lockdown ended lots of compromises have been allowed to stimulate the economy.. If it really was safety first at all times, social spaces like bars would be the last to reopen. A lot of these measures in schools and nurseries are not going to significantly decrease transmission risk because children, but they will take time and attention away from the education and caring roles people are there to actually do.

Sorry should have said thank you for cleaning the equipment my child plays woth while I am working keeping me safe and therefore keeping my patients (who are your relatives) safe. We all need to work together. My friend has gone back to work as a teacher in Japan, she is wearing a full face shield and mask in 40° heat.

No, its definitely not sustainable or desirable.
But neither is the previous existence of kids stuck at home isolated from all their peers, with an extremely underqualified parent attempting to act as teacher.
I'll take some face to face propper teaching time rather than none.

I think the difference is no one needs to go to a bar.

OP... Seriously 2020 is a year when many many people are doing things not in their job description that they feel are not best use of time or right for qualifications.

But needs must...

In private companies highly paid and qualified senior managers clean rooms and equipment after socially distanced meetings, put up signs, tape out the floor, diluting chemical to make up cleaning bottles etc etc. Our site management team think they've spent well over 2 weeks each on just this type of activity.... Not best use of their 2 degrees or MBAs

I think we’ve all just get on with it until this situation is over.
I’m doing things at work that I’m over qualified for and is not in my job description, but I’m just sucking it up and getting on with it for the greater good.
But then I work in a profession where we have always done what needs to be done, not just what I’m paid for.

3 hours of cleaning is 3 hours you were not doing the job you were supposed to be doing in those hours.

If the new normal involves this level of cleaning all the time, then it also needs additional staff so children still get the level of care and education they were before.

The new normal can't be lower standards for children's education because staff are cleaning instead of interacting with them.

The rules create extra labour, therefore the government needs to provide extra funds to cover this. Not expect schools/nurseries to just juggle, because staff can't do 2 jobs at the same time and most are already using all their budget.

An EY educator cleaning is not doing the job they are being paid to do. Who's doing that in those EY hours instead, or are we expected to think "no one, the kids are left without adequate staff attention" is acceptable now?

It’s not that the OP is overqualified, it’s that while she is cleaning she is not interacting with the children. There are limited adult available .

I'm a dentist, we always did a lot of cleaning. The whole team is cleaning at the moment. Our cleaner is only cleaning non clinical spaces.
Do we mind all cleaning? No, not if it reduces risk to our patients. Currently our cleaning regime is really time consuming. It is unsustainable as the social spacing, fallow times all cuts into our time to actually see and treat people. We're 4 months behind on our routine appointments due to closures. I'm not sure if we will ever catch up.

Well put @DisgruntledGuineaPig. I don’t understand how people can’t see this. Maybe because it doesn’t directly affect them.

Advanced clinical specialist in the health service. Will see less than half my patients due to cleaning between each one. Domestis will do full clean beginning and end of day. Criminal use of my skills when our waiting lists are so high also our domestics are skilled and trained but it's presumed as I am well paid I know this stuff. But otherwise no patients at all will be seen. Covid is a tosser