Work training - pull a sicky

[Islandcircle4]

Really considering pulling a sicky tomorrow at work. Work have organised an all day training event for the whole department around 50 people. No assurances of Covid safety,how far apart tables are etc or what the day looks like. I’m anxious. I don’t fancy it and the possibility of catching Covid. I feel bad to call in sick but really don’t want to go. Why couldn’t this be done online. Would this be naughty.

Are you planning on locking yourself away from people forever? You should seek help for that. It’s not normal.

So since March 2020 have you been to the supermarket? Pub? Restaurant? Have you used a GP? Has your child been to school? Same level of exposure. 'Covid anxiety' is the new back pain for people getting out of things they dont want to do

@TipseyTorvey

Quite surprised at the harshness of some replies here. There are some 130k people dead of covid and I don't know how many with long covid. Why would anyone want to get this illness? Fine to go to socially distanced office spaces if necessary but an unnecessary team building large group event of enforced fun seems a little reckless to me. We're heading in winter now and cases are rising again. As a pp has said double vaxxed does not mean you can't get it.

How long do you expect people to live their lives shut off from normality because of a virus that the vast, vast majority of people survive with no lasting problems?

@ThatsNiiice

So since March 2020 have you been to the supermarket? Pub? Restaurant? Have you used a GP? Has your child been to school? Same level of exposure. 'Covid anxiety' is the new back pain for people getting out of things they dont want to do

Well put. People are using this as an excuse a lot.

I always see people saying "get help". What help can you realistically get though? My brain is a bit fucked up (autism, adhd, ocd). I've fought phobias my whole life and tried counselling and medication with no luck.

Generally I have found you can only ever reprogramme your own brain through doing the scary thing over and over - which unfortunately in this case cannot be without risk.

I have been trying to go out more into shops and busy places but I still feel sheer blank panic at the idea of being indoors with loads of people.

Is there genuinely a miracle cure out there that I'm missing?

The old Covid protocol is a bit hypocritical now when people are mixing . You don’t want to go stop blaming Covid . Go or don’t go none of us know if you will be in trouble or not . If your really concerned you should of spoken up your concerns.

Go to work op, you know you need to

I am double vac. Yes I do suffer with anxiety. No I don’t have school age children. No I don’t go to the pub. Occasional restaurant when it’s not busy. I’m entitled to be worried. And yes I’ve decided to go but still entirely uncomfortable and find there’s no need for this event. I work long hours and would much rather spend the day working on the projects and reports I have to do. I haven’t even had a whole family gathering. I don’t fancy losing my taste and smell or getting long Covid thank you. I will avoid this disease as long as I can!

I'd ask for a reasonable adjustment for your anxiety then.

So are you planning to live like this forever? Because COVID isn't going anywhere.

Did you behave this way when it was flu or D&V season in previous years? Both of those illnesses can also make you very unwell long-term and can even kill you.

Life has to go on at some point.

and find there’s no need for this event
So that's what it's all about. You might not see the benefits, your manager or higher do.

Maybe there is a concern about the team not working well together, too focused on their own project...

Like I said I really don’t want long Covid or loss of tatse and smell for weeks or months on end. I’m entitled to feel how I like

Everyone is going to take different amounts of time to adjust to life outside of lockdown and restrictions. If people are anxious they need understanding and empathy and maybe help to adjust. Not being told to just get on with it.

@Islandcircle4

Like I said I really don’t want long Covid or loss of tatse and smell for weeks or months on end. I’m entitled to feel how I like

Of course you're entitled to your feelings, but that doesn't mean you can refuse to go to work events for the rest of your life.

COVID is here to stay. If you can't cope with going to work then maybe you need to start looking for another job that you can do 100% from home.

Things are getting back to normal now. You've either been vaccinated or been given the chance to. It's not practical to keep focussing on it forever. Take care of your own personal hygiene and let your vaccines do their job. Don't call in sick. It sounds to me like you just don't want to do the training.. which is 100% understandable but unfortunately part of your job.

Like I said I really don’t want long Covid or loss of tatse and smell for weeks or months on end. I’m entitled to feel how I like

you are absolutely entitled to feel like that, and i'm with you on that.

However - your employer is entitled to start operating in the way that they want to operate. You might find that they address people's issues around Covid-19 and working at this meeting - and it really is for them to decide if it's necessary or not. Your other workload is a side issue and faces everyone who gets called into these team things. (i feel your pain there)

But if you have a job you have to do it, and that often requires doing things like meetings that you don't see value in. There are ways to address this to your management, and it is entirely up to you if you want to do that or not.

I understand your concern and think some of the replies are overly harsh. Some employers just don't care. Mine wouldn't let me work from home despite a Covid outbreak in our crowded office ( I can easily work from home).

I’d take a day of annual leave.

Surely the answer is to ask about what Covid precautions are planned for the day, rather than to assume there won't be adequate precautions?

You need to calm down. Covid is here to stay; everyone will eventually get it. It’s nothing but a mild illness for the majority.

Your anxiety is irrational and you need to take steps to combat it; not try to hide away.

Op you seem very anxious. Have you asked any questions around the event, as others have said?

I dont understand those people saying "if you are double vaccinated you are fine" - what bollocks. Double vaccinated people can and do get covid all the time. The difference is that a vaccine greatly reduces your chances of ending up in hospital - but doesnt mean you "won't" ever get it. Please get your facts right

The difference is that a vaccine greatly reduces your chances of ending up in hospital - but doesnt mean you "won't" ever get it. Please get your facts right
So no different to getting a bad cold, chest infections, the flu.

So no different to before Covid.

What rules are in place within the workplace? Ask if same will apply. You cannot avoid others indefinitely if you want to keep your job and can takes steps to minimise your personal risk - vaccines, keep distant, not face to face, hygiene measures, mask. Online training is not the same.

@lovemelongtime

I dont understand those people saying "if you are double vaccinated you are fine" - what bollocks. Double vaccinated people can and do get covid all the time. The difference is that a vaccine greatly reduces your chances of ending up in hospital - but doesnt mean you "won't" ever get it. Please get your facts right

The same applies to flu yet people never behaved like this during previous flu seasons.

We can't live hidden away forever - especially not for a virus that has a tiny mortality rate!