Refusing covid testing

[MrsSleepyHB]

Aibu to feel it's selfish to refuse regular testing offered through your employer?

I don't want to be outing, but a person we know works in childcare and has chosen to refuse testing as they are concerned if they tested positive they wouldn't want to isolate for 2 weeks.

I feel like this is crazy to not take any steps we can to stay safer, especially for the people they come into contact with. I'm not a crazy covid person either! Just think we should grab anything were offered.

Aibu? Would you refuse testing?

I agree with you, I know someone in the NHS who has refused testing for the same reason, it would be inconvenient for her to have to isolate! I think its very selfish and she's gone down in my esteem as a result. Nothing I can do about it, but I won't be quick to invite her over when we're allowed!

I have voted YABU as some people just can't afford to take time off if they don't get paid. If they had symptoms they would be unreasonable, but I can fully empathise why some people just can't afford to have time off work.

I am taking part in my works testing, but I would get sick pay if ill or I can work from home while waiting for test results.

I would refuse testing if I had no symptoms, I didn’t get paid for time off, and I couldn’t afford to take 2 weeks off.

I test twice a week for work, but I've found myself thinking each time, "hm, should I go out shopping first, just in case I test positive and have to isolate?" But I know that's irresponsible so I don't. I think of myself as a responsible person who usually does what's right, but I can see how very tempting it is to NOT do the right thing, because with no symptoms it would be a pain in the arse to have to isolate.

I think its selfish for healthy people to regularly take a test that throws out false positives, that could leave others having to self isolate.

I would refuse testing unless I had symptoms.

I'm self-employed and can't afford to keep being off work.

@ItsSnowJokes @KitchenFairy

It’s you who is being unreasonable. I get some people say they can’t afford time off, but if they are asymptomatic and are not testing they are

1. Potentially forcing those who also can’t afford to be off, to be off ill with Covid, something they would not have to go through if the person just tested as asked

2 will cause the business more issues, so instead of one off a whole team could go off with covid 3 personally i would not be able to live with myself if I refused to be tested, spread it and someone was seriously ill or god forbid died

It’s not just about that one person, it’s about everyone else affected if they were positive.

@GabriellaMontez The lateral flow tests are much more likely to give a false negative than a false positive. So anyone isolating because of one probably needs to be isolating.

There is no excuse for being late for work, can't risk losing a job , driving too fast and killing someone so why should the excuse be allowed for covid ?

But really sick pay needs to be fixed in this country

So someone on minimum wage who wouldn’t get paid to isolate?

@StrawberrySquash
Roughly 1 in a 1000 will throw up a false positive.

@KitchenFairy

I would refuse testing if I had no symptoms, I didn’t get paid for time off, and I couldn’t afford to take 2 weeks off.

But what about the people you could infect if you work when COVID positive??

If everyone got tested regularly and isolated if they tested positive, the likelihood of you catching COVID would go right down. That’s the whole point ....

@DarcyLewis

So someone on minimum wage who wouldn’t get paid to isolate?

....who could well have been infected by someone else who refused to isolate....

It’s not just about that one person, it’s about everyone else affected if they were positive.

Then the government need to give everyone full pay when they isolate.

I understand someone refusing tests, if they dont get paid for the time they'd be taking off.

@sunflowersandbuttercups

I would refuse testing unless I had symptoms.

I'm self-employed and can't afford to keep being off work.

Does it not bother you that one of the most obvious ways of you catching COVID in the first place would be people not testing and/or refusing to isolate??

You aren't asked to self isolate from a rapid lateral flow test coming out positive, as I understand. If your lateral flow comes out positive then you're supposed to get a full PCR test to confirm it.

@ShinyMe

You aren't asked to self isolate from a rapid lateral flow test coming out positive, as I understand. If your lateral flow comes out positive then you're supposed to get a full PCR test to confirm it.

But the advice is to isolate isn’t it ?

Does it not bother you that one of the most obvious ways of you catching COVID in the first place would be people not testing and/or refusing to isolate?

Not really. I'm more bothered that millions of people are expected to stay home from work for 10 days at a time with minimal or zero income.

Sort out the sick pay problem if you want people to stay off work for days on end. It's not difficult.

I would refuse just because I can’t afford for myself and DH to both take two weeks off unpaid. If we were to receive full sick pay yes I would.

The isolation, lockdowns and testing etc is only ever intended to prevent the NHS being overwhelmed, not about stopping people catching the illness. Like flu this will be with us forever now I think.

The constant lockdown and interruption to business and commerce will do more more longterm damage that the disease. Every death is an individual tragedy for the family involved. But no more so than deaths from other illnesses that are not being diagnosed and treated.

Does it not bother you that one of the most obvious ways of you catching COVID in the first place would be people not testing and/or refusing to isolate??

The most obvious way of catching it is being in hospital not from asymptomatic spread.

@Embroideredstars

The isolation, lockdowns and testing etc is only ever intended to prevent the NHS being overwhelmed, not about stopping people catching the illness. Like flu this will be with us forever now I think.

The constant lockdown and interruption to business and commerce will do more more longterm damage that the disease. Every death is an individual tragedy for the family involved. But no more so than deaths from other illnesses that are not being diagnosed and treated.

That’s not your decision to make for others .

@hm246

I would refuse just because I can’t afford for myself and DH to both take two weeks off unpaid. If we were to receive full sick pay yes I would.

Again it’s not 2 weeks it’s 10 days.

Sorting out sick pay instead of paying millions to Serco would be a better use of resources to fight Covid 19. And in any case, many employers if someone was required to isolate would find ways as far as possible to have wfh during the isolation time. Not applicable with childcare provision but in plenty of other instances (one of the local estate agents has more people in the office than all the others put together, for example).