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AIBU?

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Original poster

Key worker rant

352 replies

cutie101 · 18/08/2020 23:02

What qualifies as key worker really annoys me.
More to the point the people who benefit from discounts and privileges even though they havent been in critical roles is getting to me.
Yes frontline staff have been absolutely amazing and deserve it, but what about the admin person who works for the NHS, or the optician, or the psychologists etc..their jobs haven't been impacted at all, but they benefit from the same discount as the true heroes. Im a teacher and have honestly never worked more than I have since March, in every day looking after children of key workers and vulnerable children, plus creating and recording lessons, making work available online, marking all work each day as well as so many other things...really annoyed me that looking in a car showroom the other day, those who work for the NHS get the staff discount at the moment, but not me. I am more than happy for the doctors, nurses, paramedics etc to benefit, but random admin who have been working from home or even furloughed...
Likewise I know a couple, both who worked from home throughout, just like so many other people. One is a solicitor in the public sector and the other works for a water company in their IT department. Again neither job critical during this time, but because one works for a water company and the other in the public sector, they are both classified as key workers so their children could carry on going to school, nursery etc.
I'm grumpy and ranting, but does anyone else feel the same?

OP posts:
rosinavera · 21/08/2020 18:07

@Orchidsindoors

Pomegranate, they may have been doing different things, but they would be working within their remit and job pay level. For example they wouldnt send an admin worker to do anything surgical. Some would have been moved up a scale if they were taking on extra duties. We need to get away from the fallacy that key workers were saving the world. They were doing their job and being paid for it, as were millions of others, working from home. The only reason they were given the term key worker, was to get the childcare, not to get discounts, that's just an added nicety.
I'm sorry but this is just wrong! We WERE doing above and beyond our remit and job pay level and on top of that we were working in a hospital with the anxiety that everyone around us was dropping like flies with COVID and worrying whether we were going to get it next
Orchidsindoors · 21/08/2020 18:20

"I'm sorry but this is just wrong! We WERE doing above and beyond our remit and job pay level and on top of that we were working in a hospital with the anxiety that everyone around us was dropping like flies with COVID and worrying whether we were going to get it next"

Feeling you were doing above and beyond, doesnt always mean you worked out of your pay scale. For example, a poster above said she had to send out thousands of cancellations. That might not be what she usually does, but still within remit of her admin role. If you really feel you were doing tasks that were out of your pay scale you should raise this with your unions or management as you may be able to get some sort of additional payment. Yes times were hard and scary, as they were for everyone, but you were simply doing your role.

SuperlativeScrubs · 21/08/2020 18:34

Not sure what the benefit is of a free pizza when NHS workers can't even get a decent wage.

Or the benefit of working 12 hour days with patients who barely understand at the best of times (Neuro).

Lemonyfuckit · 21/08/2020 18:44

I think you sound bitter and yes, YABU.

My DP works for the NHS. Not frontline, and yes he's been wfh during this as he does a desk job, but he's been absolutely flat out because of COVID. He's being doing so much behind the scenes, including out of hours etc in relation to the COVID response; he doesn't get over time, as a public sector work he doesn't get a huge salary, I think the terms 'heros' are over-bandied about but do I think he deserves some few key worker discounts that some places see fit to offer? Yes I bloody well do.

Pomegranatepompom · 21/08/2020 18:45

We weren’t simply doing our role - you have absolutely no idea.

RunningFromInsanity · 21/08/2020 19:03

This is why ‘Harper’s Law’ about mandatory life sentences for killing front line workers will be passed.
How do you define which jobs are more important and which lives are worth more than others.

Savananan · 21/08/2020 19:04

If you really feel you were doing tasks that were out of your pay scale you should raise this with your unions or management as you may be able to get some sort of additional payment

Hahaha, next joke...

SentientAndCognisant · 21/08/2020 19:10

Teachers are key workers .You're not excluded in any way
Your post has an unfortunate tone of the martyr about it, I hope it was unintentional
Finally, psychiatrists,psychologists,OT,SW, CPN,CMHT staff have all been working throughout the covid pandemic

hazyjinty01 · 21/08/2020 19:11

I'm a nurse, Covid -19 has been hell, but without those 'office workers' who are working from home if they can my job would have been a lot worse, we have had support from those 'office people' way beyond there normal hours, tbe admin that Covid-19 has generated would be unmanageable without them. So please stop judging when you don't know how Covid-19 has affected people

rosinavera · 21/08/2020 19:37

@Orchidsindoors

"I'm sorry but this is just wrong! We WERE doing above and beyond our remit and job pay level and on top of that we were working in a hospital with the anxiety that everyone around us was dropping like flies with COVID and worrying whether we were going to get it next"

Feeling you were doing above and beyond, doesnt always mean you worked out of your pay scale. For example, a poster above said she had to send out thousands of cancellations. That might not be what she usually does, but still within remit of her admin role. If you really feel you were doing tasks that were out of your pay scale you should raise this with your unions or management as you may be able to get some sort of additional payment. Yes times were hard and scary, as they were for everyone, but you were simply doing your role.

As savananan said ha - next joke!!
Jennev · 21/08/2020 19:42

@hazyjinty01

I'm a nurse, Covid -19 has been hell, but without those 'office workers' who are working from home if they can my job would have been a lot worse, we have had support from those 'office people' way beyond there normal hours, tbe admin that Covid-19 has generated would be unmanageable without them. So please stop judging when you don't know how Covid-19 has affected people
Thank you for the recognition ❤️
SentientAndCognisant · 21/08/2020 19:43

If you really feel you were doing tasks that were out of your pay scale you should raise this with your unions or management as you may be able to get some sort of additional payment

Delightfully naive and all just you tell them

Clearly you do not work in the public sector

Orchidsindoors · 21/08/2020 20:03

Sentient....well, if you do, you clearly dont know your stuff. Never heard of an NHS staff honorarium? Ie where staff get an additional payment for doing work outside of their remit,? No?

SentientAndCognisant · 21/08/2020 20:08

Oh yes now you mention it NHS staff honorarium that’s as common as clean cups in the kitchen

SentientAndCognisant · 21/08/2020 20:19

@Orchidsindoors are you really suggesting there’s some process & payment that financially remunerates staff doing additional duties
Where?
Holby General
Pontypandy CMHT

If you’re talking about staff who act up to a vacant post and are on a higher grade,sure that goes on

The shift by shift ,day to day work were staff take on increased responsibility no that’s not financially remunerated. At all
Nor is the huge amount of unpaid hours the staff put in,to support services

D4rwin · 21/08/2020 20:20

Rail workers (engineering in my example) had to carry on working. They work all over the country. Usually away from home. They sometimes struggled to book hotels. They had few to zero places to eat when away. Nowhere to go between shifts away. Including lacking toilets.

And now. Now facing job cuts across the sector.

No discounts for them.
I'm sure you're butt hurt that blue light discounts have been around for years, but as teachers are usually LA employees you'll probably find you are eligible for quite a few perks of your own.

Smiling89 · 21/08/2020 20:30

Using your example as an optician.....

Being an optometrist I can tell you that whilst contracted to provide NHS sight tests, most opticians are employed by private companies and therefore DO NOT receive NHS discount.

Also I have worked throughout the pandemic in a patient facing role seeing emergency eye problems. Opticians are the 17th highest risk jobs during a pandemic because we work within inches of patients faces. The first deaths from corona in China were ophthalmologists - the first person in China to flag COVID 19 as serious was an ophthalmologist.

So all in all, some of us opticians have worked throughout with no NHS benefits. Not that I expect any particular recognition for this but I certainly haven't been bone idle during this period (covering all the other staffs jobs who were furloughed and seeing patients) and I haven't received any benefits for being a key worker.

rosinavera · 21/08/2020 20:32

@SentientAndCognisant

If you really feel you were doing tasks that were out of your pay scale you should raise this with your unions or management as you may be able to get some sort of additional payment

Delightfully naive and all just you tell them

Clearly you do not work in the public sector

Absolutely this!
Orchidsindoors · 21/08/2020 20:34

Sentient...you agreed you'd heard about honorariums after you tried to make out I didnt know anything. Yes there are acting up payments when people officially act up. And yes often people will go above and beyond what is expected of them. You get that in any walk of like and is highly commendable. And yes, lots of people will have done this in lockdown. But, they will have been doing work expected of them within their job description or grade. If theyve done something outside of this, they should be remunerated for it and that's where honorariums come in. It sounds like you do know this.

Orchidsindoors · 21/08/2020 20:40

I actually dont mind about NHS discounts, just dispelling a few myths about key worker heroes.

Orchidsindoors · 21/08/2020 20:43

Rosinavera...clearly you dont know about honorariums either

rosinavera · 21/08/2020 20:45

@Orchidsindoors

I actually dont mind about NHS discounts, just dispelling a few myths about key worker heroes.
So you actually know first-hand about our working practices during COVID do you as you feel qualified to "dispell a few myths about key worker heroes!
rosinavera · 21/08/2020 20:45

@Orchidsindoors

Rosinavera...clearly you dont know about honorariums either
No I don't know about them and how do YOU know about them?
Orchidsindoors · 21/08/2020 20:46

Rosinavera...they arent a secret

rosinavera · 21/08/2020 20:50

Well they obviously must be because I've worked in the NHS for 39 years and have never heard of them @Orchidindoors.