To find people's duplicity towards key workers upsetting

[hibbledibble]

On one hand, it's 'clap for carers' and praising NHS staff as 'heroes'.

On the other hand, the amount of vitriol towards key workers who need childcare so they can do their jobs is shocking. In addition, the public that praises us, also ignores lockdown rules, causing even greater strain to the NHS.

I am a doctor, and I was redeployed during the first wave. It was horrific. I am still recovering now, and seeking treatment for PTSD. I have seen many of my colleagues become seriously unwell, and others have died.

We don't want claps (in fact, please don't) but decent, safe working conditions (including proper PPE), and sufficient childcare. I can't work from home, so my children (primary and preschool age) need to be cared for.

I admit I am taking this fairly personally as I have seen first hand the absolute horror that this virus has caused, and have been traumatised by it. My hospital is well over capacity, and people are dying waiting for ventilators.

Patchwork if your friend was furloughed for a long time then her job is incredibly precarious right now.
She’ll know this.
If she also knows she can’t make a good fist of doing her job and home schooling then what’s she to do? Risk her already precarious job?

Agree with @HelloMissus. People querying whether financial services are essential: seriously?? Such narrow, parochial views.

No issue with you accessing childcare, however I personally know many ‘key workers’ accessing it who really shouldn’t. These are the people I have issue with and why I voted YABU.

For example I know of at least 3 households where both parents are working from home but the extremely broad definition of key workers means they qualify and can send their children to nursery and school. I’m not talking about people who are taking any sensitive calls or may have to go into the office or else where at the drop of a hat. These particular parents would find it ‘hard to concentrate’ with their children in the house.

What I don’t know is how much support they are getting from their employers to rebalance their workload.

[quote Moo678]@hibbledibble

Yes - this is the sort of attitude that’s prevalent on Mumsnet. My husband is a child psychiatrist. He has the ability to do some (not all) of his appointments and admin from home. The impression I get from Mumsnet is that because other people are working from home and doing childcare he should be doing his video appointments and writing up notes with our two yr old rampaging in the background. Not sure what he’s supposed to do in an emergency - leave her in the car outside the hospital? Like yours, our school have trusted us to be professional and make the decision regarding how much childcare we need. We’re taking the bare minimum but I’m not going compromise patient treatment because it makes things ‘fair’ in the eyes of Mumsnet.

There was a thread on here a few days ago where lots of people seemed to think a social worker dealing with rape and domestic abuse clients wasn’t eligible for a place because she could make her sensitive phone calls from home!!![/quote]
I thought all nurseries were open as usual so there shouldn’t be any issues with two year olds?
My dd psychiatrist appointment was done over the phone and lasted three minutes. I can’t say it was worth bothering at all.

Most of the objections seem to be around people using critical worker placements to get tax returns in.
My neighbours are accountants and have four under the age of 6. They are doing shift work between them.

It's not the people who genuinely need a place I am pissed off with, it's the parents with jobs like mine (university admin and HR) who could clearly do the juggle but just don't want to and would rather be selfish. School is to be used as a last resort for emergency childcare. This is not the case for workers like me who are "critical" this time but do NOT need their child in school.

What is the point of the closures as things stand?! All it's doing is depriving the children at home of proper schooling whilst not impacting transmission rates.

None of us want to homeschool!!!

I've not seen any vitriol towards key workers like yourselves needing childcare.

Yes there have been threads about office workers who work from home sending their dc into school, but that's not the same thing.

HelloMissus
People are angry at folk sending their kids to school.
Yet they’ll be the first bleating if they can’t get a delivery of whatever shite they’re ordering. Or they can’t get a plumber or a boiler fixed. Or an appointment with a vet.
They’ll be livid if their internet goes down or mobile signal crashes.
And yeah, they’d quite like to still watch TV.
Oh and they still want someone wiping their granny’s arse. And making sure she’s fed.
And if someone could drive the taxi to take her to her vaccination.

But yeah. Everyone apart from doctors should stay home and teach their kids.
This 100%

Yes!

It's like those who want a stricter lockdown & can stay at home forever. What they mean is I can stay at home if other people deliver me food, ensure my internet/heating is working etc.

whatafuster if NHS staff what to retire with a pension they’d better support fund managers working.

I mean what jobs are NOT essential then? The schools might as well be reopened for anyone not on furlough.

“I thought all nurseries were open as usual so there shouldn’t be any issues with two year olds”

This depends where in the UK you are. In Scotland nurseries are also closed.

@Pigeonsareclever

I mean what jobs are NOT essential then? The schools might as well be reopened for anyone not on furlough.

Right but that's total bullshit though isn't it? Any you know it, as loads of kids are at home.

None of us want to homeschool!!!

As much as a pain at is. I would happily chose this if I didn't have a job/was furloughed as the school cant possibly provide a proper education under these conditions. And obviously doing at home whilst working is difficult.

Tbh i would probably give my up job as my DH is the higher earner if I feel my dc are struggling too much.

I totally blame the government for not making clear rules and enforcing them .It is washing its hands of the fact that it spent £20 billion of our money on spivs and we are where are , one of the worst death tolls in the world .

@rolliy

I would happily be furloughed so I could be at home & devote my time to educating dc. I don't have that option.

In fairness neither do most people. Key worker or not you can't just ask to be furloughed. I couldn't and I work in the cultural sector.

[quote Moo678]@hibbledibble

Yes - this is the sort of attitude that’s prevalent on Mumsnet. My husband is a child psychiatrist. He has the ability to do some (not all) of his appointments and admin from home. The impression I get from Mumsnet is that because other people are working from home and doing childcare he should be doing his video appointments and writing up notes with our two yr old rampaging in the background. Not sure what he’s supposed to do in an emergency - leave her in the car outside the hospital? Like yours, our school have trusted us to be professional and make the decision regarding how much childcare we need. We’re taking the bare minimum but I’m not going compromise patient treatment because it makes things ‘fair’ in the eyes of Mumsnet.

There was a thread on here a few days ago where lots of people seemed to think a social worker dealing with rape and domestic abuse clients wasn’t eligible for a place because she could make her sensitive phone calls from home!!![/quote]
The impression I get from Mumsnet is that because other people are working from home and doing childcare he should be doing his video appointments and writing up notes with our two yr old rampaging in the background.

@Moo678

I get your husband is classified as a key worker and not all jobs are, but with all due respect this comment is very tone deaf. This is precisely the situation that other working parents are in and are expected to manage. their jobs may not be classified as essential, but if is the only source of income for your family and you can’t afford to lose it, what do you expect people to do?
Have some thought and check your privilege.

@HelloMissus oh yes, I don’t blame her as such. She’s taking advantage of a stupid system. But she’s quite clearly not a key worker- her company are taking advantage, and it needs to stop. Being worried about job security when you can reasonably do your job around kids isn’t a valid reason to take a place IMO- but people will obviously act in their own interests unless policy makers take decisions to stop them. I think that the government have trusted people to ‘do the right thing’ here, but they didn’t anticipate how fed up we all are, and therefore people are using key worker spaces in much higher numbers this time around.

On the other hand, I’m worrying about job security and I’m not a key worker. Worked all through the last lockdown with DC. My sympathy is limited for my friend tbh- I can understand why she’s doing it, but it doesn’t make it right. And the more people that do it, the longer this situation drags on for all of us.

The only posts I've seen on here are about people taking advantage, which obviously doesn't include you. If there are teachers saying that the numbers of children have massively increased since the last lockdown then that would suggest there are people taking advantage. Or that lots of parents have gotten new jobs as key workers, which for some might be the case though seems unlikely for all.

@Plussizejumpsuit no it’s not ‘bullshit’ as if you look at the news some schools are 70% full. Everyone thinks their job is so important that they take priority over everyone else. I doubt 70% occupancy is going to break transmission. Maybe we should let the fund managers run things lest the country collapse.

Either open the schools or be stricter because as it stands the children at home are becoming the most disadvantaged.

No one is begrudging frontline nhs staff KW places, but when classes are over 50%-and increasing day by day- full with pupils who have one parent as a sahp claiming KW places, it creates problems.

What do you think?

I sort of agree - yesterday I picked up DC and saw 2 kids whose mum is SAHP in school. Her husband is a property developer! I was quite gobsmacked to be honest. I know this woman fairly well, having been on PTA things with her etc but I guess her kids could have EHCPs?

I'm also reluctant for the guidance o be more stringent as it may mean we didn't get a place as DH predominantly WFH, despite me being frontline NHS out of the home.

It's hard to know what to say because I don't want to sound patronising or say the wrong thing but all I can say is thank you for all of the work you have done and continue to do. I can't imagine how frustrating it is for you to read people moaning about keyworkers and childcare. It's hard to do I know but try to switch off from them and don't engage. You know what you've been through and continue to go through and all we can do as the general public is be grateful for that and that includes ALL keyworkers who continue to get up everyday and go out to work to help protect and keep our country running.

I don't know how you guys are holding it together. I totally appreciate all that you do.
I work in education and I will be having to put my own child in for key worker provision so I can do my job looking after key workers SEN children. The amount of vitriol I have seen in the press and online towards the education sector is truly frightening and throughly disheartening.

As already mentioned, I haven't seen any of what you describe with respect to NHS workers. Of course you need childcare if your role is based out of the home and you are on the front line.

I do feel that keyworker/critical worker is far too widely drafted though - for example, my sister works as office support/admin for a water board/company and is WFH now. The water board is a critical service (obviously), but her role is not integral to the continuation of that service and she is WFH (along with non KW husband) and could probably manage fine without the school place. Yes it would be difficult trying to both WFH with a DC to homeschool - but that's actually the reality faced by many in non-KW roles at the moment anyway, and for all of those people there is no alternative or choice.

Why are you taking it personally?? It’s crystal clear that there is no judging of genuine key workers accessing school places! It’s those who are abusing the system that people have issues with. I know of several people who are doing this and the fact is that schools are far busier than they were last time. It defeats the whole point of closing them. As a Dr I would have thought you’d prefer to see as few ‘Super spreading’ children in school as possible??

Key worker or not you can't just ask to be furloughed. I couldn't and I work in the cultural sector.

Yes you can if you have to provide childcare.

I know people that have done so. Employers don't have to agree & are less likely to do so as the scheme now requires more input from the company.

Judginess over who is taking up key worker places seems to have replaced the "if you leave the house you are a MURDERER" madness we had in the previous lockdown. I wonder what will be people's focus to attack others over if we get another lockdown?