How easy is it to actually take a week off?

[OntheWaves40]

I work in a school. Last week a couple of my pupils had cold/cough symptoms, prior to current advice, no foreign travel etc. I am now ill with same symptoms most likely caught from them. If I ring school on Monday they are most likely to think i’m skiving and will be expected in regardless as that’s the kind of place it is.
How is everyone else coping with this? I’m not self isolating as yet as i’m confused, though i’ve not been in close contact with anyone either.

Fgs. It's not remotely 'confusing'. You have the symptoms for which people have been instructed to self-isolate. So bloody self-isolate! Stop speculating about what might happen in 2 weeks, or what has caused you to cough, just do what you're supposed to do and stay home. Dh and I are both teachers. If we get symptoms we will stay at home.

I work in a school and I understand the OPs problem. We have the same attitude here, unless you're dying you're pretty much expected to come in.

Fact is, government want us to keep schools open for as long as possible to keep the burden off the NHS. So we're all under a massive amount of pressure to keep going in.

I think that is a terrible move but there is a massive difference between what the government is recommending and what bosses and managers expect.

I don't think you can understand school working culture unless you have worked in one.

I've worked in schools, and out of schools, and honestly most workplaces have an attitude of "unless you're literally dying, you come in".
We're all in the same position.
You still have to stay home.

It doesn't matter what school working culture is. It doesn't matter if you 'think' it's a cold or tonsillitis. If you have a new cough or a temperature you self isolate for 7 days. There is no doubt that you should be off next week. I don't understand why you think you are more busy or important than anyone else, you're not.

It's government advice I'm afraid. That top.trumps any attitude your employer may have towards you having time off.

Do I self isolate as have cough/temp spikes or do I go to work as I clearly have a cold?

I tell you what, why don't you stop asking randoms on the internet what to do and take some responsibility and make your own decision based on information to hand!

How does that grab you for advice?

Guide here in Australia is, if you have a fever, you isolate and call GP.
You obviously have a fever

As a teacher I understand how hard it is to ring in sick. We know it affects our colleagues who have to cover for us and the guilt is massive.

As you have a cough and temperature spikes with what is most likely a cold you still must stay off as there is a slim chance it may be CV.

It does sound like a cold though so settle down watch some TV, read some books and maybe do something round the house that you have maybe not had time to do if you feel better later in the week

I can believe it's for real and not a GF. One of the teachers at dds school was coughing a lot on Friday, a lot as in he had to leave the class three times in an hour something he's never done in the four years hes taught my daughter. He told the anxious kids it's probably just a cold. They aren't stupid and know he should have been at home. Kids that weren't scared to attend school are now . Kids that follow the rules, having to sit and watch a teacher ignore them because he thinks he knows better.

Thanks for the further reassurance that not sending my daughter to school on Monday is the correct thing to do. There's nothing confusing about it. People have been saying that closing schools won't work because kids will meet up? Well keeping them open won't work either if teachers who should be self isolating don't stay fucking home.

There us more to it than just keeping people in self isolation for the purposes of reducing the spread. It's also to create a partial 'lockdown' by having fewer people out and about. The Chief Scientific Advisor Sir Patrick Valancesaid so himself on sky news Friday morning. So even if people are just experiencing a cold it doesn't really matter, fewer people out us a good thing.

Other countries are taking much more drastic measures, would you defy them too OP? I'm a teacher too, I gave a cough, I'm self isolating until Thursday. Simple.

Will you bloody stop trying to kill vulnerable people like me and self isolate!!!!

I'm self isolating as much as I can but I still need to go to the shop and the hospital. If you have corona and you go outdide, you'll spread it and make it more difficult for me to survive.

You can still talk through the phone. Why do you need to see them?