Anyone else getting tired of the furlough bashing?

[NEVERQUIT3331]

First, it was immigrants stealing the jobs. Then it was bashing people on benefits. Now it is furlough bashing.

People need to understand that a lot of people are struggling on 100 percent of their current salaries. Living on 80 percent will not be easy either for anyone (especially for groups like single parents.) I am someone who was lucky to work the majority of the months since March 2020. I am lucky I still have a job. Some people that were furloughed were not that lucky they were made redundant. Most people would rather work than be redundant and worry about how to pay their next bill or mortgage.

Yes you might see people go to parks/beaches during furlough and others had to work without a holiday. But for most people it was a constant worry whether they would have a job. Also, if someone is on furlough what do you want them to do? Just spend all day at home twiddling their thumbs and isolated. That is not good for anyone's mental health. Others also have worked second jobs to ensure they could pay their bill.

Are there people who abuse the system? Of course. You get that with every system: taxation, benefit, furlough etc.. But punishing the vast majority of people on benefits, furlough who are there through no fault of their own is never the answer. We need to learn to be more compassionate as a nation and realize life is not as rosy as some may perceive. I wish everyone on furlough good luck and hope they keep their jobs and for anyone being currently unemployed/redundant I hope they find work. and leave you with this quote:

"Do not trust everything you see even salt tastes like sugar."

I'm not generally mad about furlough. I know people in lots of different situations.

I judge my friend's employer for cutting the wages of working staff to 80% to match furloughed employees, whilst making them cover additional work.

I'm envious of the friend on flexi furlough. One day a week, so on a whopping 96% of his salary for four days a week.

I hate that our accountants flexi furlough their payroll staff. This has led to errors in our payroll because their staff have more to do in less time... Because of furlough!

As someone who's worked throughout, I do feel like a free week on the government when this is all over would make it all square

I don't care what they do @Ginuwine but maybe it was the multiple social media posts highlighting how the long days in the sun and special family time were a blessing? Maybe it was people claiming that we should all use this time to "slow the pace" of life and reconnect with our loved ones? Maybe it was smug photos of garden redesigns and banana bread?
I know social media isn't compulsory and I can scroll on past but if you want to show off about all your spare time when the going is good, don't expect much sympathy when it starts to grate.

Ds was also back at school before others while I was still furloughed.. couldnt care less what people thought

Many on furlough are able to claim the difference back in benefit if on very low wages. Most are at the very least saving on work related and some social expenses. There will be people caught short and finding things very difficult but I'm not sure being on furlough is as bleak as some would make out. Many have caught up on home projects, invested time in hobbies and study, had the time to homeschool and have time with children most could only dream of. Having to work on a low end salary and homeschool with standard annual leave with no time to make home or relax has been the worst. The house is a mess, my home doesn't feel like my own, and there has been very little down time where I wasn't exhausted. I've struggled to get up and don't each day when faced with the face book boasts of those embracing spare time. Maybe there are no winners. I wouldn't work through it again, for the thanks I've had I'm angry at myself for not quitting and taking a hand out.

I don't have an issue with people on furlough where the business is unable to open, there is a genuine need there.

However my resentment comes from my particular company that furloughed staff on 100% salary for 6months+ and those people due to unions are in worse a position should their be any redundancies because everyone has to be treated fairly. With the greatest respect it has menst people have been paid full salary for doing no work for 5 mot has and without havering to worry about losing their jobs. Then they complained because they had to use some of their annual leave during furlough. It makes me feel sick that I had to work throughout and get no extra benefit for having to do so. Who in this particular situation wouldn't have loved 6 months off work on full pay, knowing they still have a job. Taking the piss!

@superCaliFragalistic how is it smug to post pictures of yourself out in the sun?? I did that nearly every day last year because I liked how I looked with a tan. After years of working in the hospitality industry 12 hours a day and being whiter than a ghost most of the time, I wanted to show off having a bit of colour and a bit of weight loss from all the walks. Stop being bitter, peoples lives dont stop just because you wanted them to be sitting inside miserable while you worked.

@Whammyyammy

Not been furloughed and dont want to be. The accured paid holidays is a bit odd? Paid to stay at home, but still expect to have paid leave when you return?

I do payroll and a couple of the staff expected their usual furlough pay plus 2 full extra weeks on top. They were very disappointed when I pointed out it wasn't going to happen.

BungleandGeorge
I see, thanks for clarifying that

I don't furlough bash. But yes, it does irritate me when people on furlough (family members) currently also working a part time job, 15hrs a week, moan about how this PT job impinges on their otherwise free time. As they're getting 100% furlough, plus their PT pay, plus holiday pay. And another summer off.

There are consequences to being furloughed. Most mortgage lenders will now refuse applications for new mortgages and remortgages if you were furloughed, meaning if your fixed rate ends you're stuck with your existing lender. The chances are that if you have been in say a hospitality job, you'll have to try and persuade an employer in a new sector that you have the necessary skills given there won't be many vacancies in your current area of work. And the very day the furlough scheme ends, a whole chunk of the country will be let go, thus reducing their chance of finding a new job.

I was made redundant in March 2020 and was able to find something else by July, because it was relatively early in the pandemic. Now? I'd struggle.

Yes, I’ve seen a lot of this and it really hacks me off. I’ve not only worked all the way through the pandemic, I set up my own business partway through as well. If people are furloughed there’s a good reason. No need to bash them.

I am curious as to what the appropriate response is to being furloughed.

"I hate being furloughed, I'm bored/lonely/poor." Well, you're getting paid to do nothing, don't be ungrateful.

"I like being furloughed. I've made the most of the time off." Don't be so bloody smug.

.

@PinkiOcelot

I’ve worked all the way through and was pissed off to have been sat boiling in an office throughout the summer and come home and my furloughed neighbours have been in the garden all day sporting lovely tans. Likewise in the winter when I’ve been scraping the ice off my car at 7 am when they’re still snug in bed.

I also don’t think that people on furlough should have been able to go out and work in another full time role whilst getting 80% of their original wage. Those jobs should have been saved for those who were getting nothing.

This whole situation has been mismanaged from the get go.

Did you want them locked inside? If you couldn't enjoy the sunshine then nobody else should either?

What a fucking weird attitude.

I’ve been furloughed for just over a year now. My mental health is shot...I feel worthless, useless and have to listen to people tell me “how lucky I am!”

I would give anything to be back at work!!!

I’ve not witnessed any furlough bashing although have had to change the subject while on the phone to my sister while she moans about how hard furlough is.
My daughter lost her job and my work has been crazy. I bite my tongue because I do understand, it has been hard for her, a different kind of hard and it isn’t a competition but sometimes I do struggle.
I’ve really tried hard not to complain about work to anyone but she takes this as me being fine and moans that she’s bored, she’s watched the whole of Netflix, run out of things to bake etc.

@SquizzaMama

I’ve been furloughed for just over a year now. My mental health is shot...I feel worthless, useless and have to listen to people tell me “how lucky I am!”

I would give anything to be back at work!!!

That's really shit, I feel lucky to have worked throughout, it's been testing at times and I'm on a much reduced salary but I know my MH would be in tatters without the routine and escaping the house.

@Exhausted4ever

Those on furlough haven't been on holiday though have they?

I was on furlough last year for 9 months and for me, it was an extended holiday. I absolutely loved being at home, and on 80% pay. I’d loved to be furloughed again for this summer but I think it’s unlikely 😁.

My DH was still working full time and has been promoted and received a pay rise. I may have not enjoyed it so much if he’d also been furloughed.

I know my viewpoint is unusual.

At the end of the day, people on furlough have had what we would all dream of - a gloriously long holiday. Especially last summer, when the weather was lovely.

You can deny this all you want. Oh, it's hurt my mental health, oh I don't know if I have a job to go back to, oh it's been so boring, oh it's been so hard on 80% of my wage.

You can portray it in any way you want, but at the end of the day, you have had a very long holiday whilst many other workers have slogged their guts out on the front line.

Take the poster a few posts above, demanding to know why she shouldn't have shared pictures of her lovely tan. Are you mad? You have completely missed the point.

Anyone who complains about the trials of furlough to me gets zero sympathy.

The one exception is anyone who actually lost their job. They, I do feel for. But the rest of you? Just accept you have had want lots of us would dream of - a loooong holiday to spend on hobbies, with your children, watching Netflix, or whatever you wanted within the realms of lockdown.

Jeez.

I think people should be allowed to point out flaws in the ways the furlough scheme has been implemented without being accused of "bashing" furloughed individuals. Although in some instances (where businesses have been forced to close for example) it is necessary, some companies have completely taken the piss.

We will all be paying for this for a very, very long time through increased taxation so people have a right to question the fairness or wisdom of those on Furlough being allowed to accrue paid holiday and to take on second jobs, start their own business etc while still being paid 80-100% of their wage.

I keep seeing posts saying "no one has chosen to be furloughed" which isn't strictly true. Most people will have had no choice, but one of my relatives asked to be furloughed as she didn't want to juggle home-schooling with WFH and this was agreed. Surely, she can't be the only one? Her DH is a high earner so she was happy as Larry enjoying several months off on 80% of her wage while her colleagues had to cover her work between them. I don't blame her personally for this, but I do think it's reasonable to criticise a system that allows this to happen.

@Grilledaubergines

The people on furlough had no choice! Something most seem to forget.

I don’t think anyone at all has forgotten that.

But being on the other side of the coin hasn’t been a bundle of glory either.

Actually i know some people who worked in companies that were struggling financially. They gave people the opportunity to cut hours or take voluntary furlough. One of my friends had kids at home from school so chose voluntary furlough. So some people did choose it.

I do agree it should have been sectors that had to close, rather than extended for various reasons to others when plenty of people didn't have that choice and chance. My friends in hospitality, hair and beauty are over the moon to be heading back to work very soon, we had a group call last night and some were in tears with the relief.

I can understand why alot of people are envious of those on furlough

If as I pointed out in my company where there is no threat of job loss, who on earth would turn round and say they would not of loved to have had over 6 months off on full pay. You would be a mug to turn that down! Unfortunately we weren't given a choice but im notnashamed to admit how utterly jealous I am of my colleagues who were.

And yes we are all going to pay it back from our taxes so it really sticks the knife in more that I didn't get to have 6months the off on full pay and will now also have to pay more taxes to pay for those who did.

Urgh life is utterly unfair sometimes.

Again this is me saying this in the context of my company situation and I recognise this is not the same for others where job security was a real concern.

Well it is to be expected after all the teacher, nurse and public sector bashing really - people who have mostly worked throughout the pandemic, some at the sharp end of it. Furloughed people are just benefit scroungers to the Tories after all, even if they were forced into creating the benefit in the first place.

My view is that there have been a number of reliefs that the treasury has created that are hugely open to abuse and unfairly exclude people, furlough is definitely one of those. Lots of examples abound about this and I can think that it was beyond the ken of those clever people in the Treasury to foresee this in some way. This is not bashing anyone on furlough, the vast majority of whom would like their jobs to restart and get that 20% of their pay back.

@sjfjsnfkdhsbd

Those objecting to people continuing to accrue annual leave whilst furloughed, do you also object to women accruing annual leave whilst on maternity leave?

No because being furloughed because there is no work available is totally different to having leave because you’re recovering from birth and caring for a baby

Accruing leave when you’re already on leave seems crazy