Please stop me from handing in my notice tomorrow! NHS rant

[Rantysaurus]

I’ll keep this brief but would love any advice before tomorrow.

Me and colleague are paediatric AHPs in a very small team. Same job, banding, roles and responsibilities. Not essential for COVID in our current roles so we knew we’d be redeployed.

Manager announced today that I’m being redeployed from tomorrow (no idea where yet but probably as a healthcare support worker on acute ward going by pattern I’ve seen today among other staff) but colleague has been given at least a week worth of work she can do from home in her current role.

I asked how manager had come to this decision. Got told I didn’t need to know and ultimately I need to do as I’m told. Me and colleague are close friends and we discussed afterwards. She also has no idea how this has been decided. We both have children and taking advantage of the school childcare provision which is working well for us. She said she couldn’t think of any personal circumstances which might have swayed the decision today. She is no higher risk than me for catching covid. She is, however, good friends with our manager and they socialise frequently outside of work.

I have a strong feeling that favouritism was the decider in what happened today.

Wibu to speak to manager about this tomorrow and request a proper explanation as to how she came to this decision? Why she’s putting me more at risk than my colleague by asking me to attend our local hospital tomorrow to be redeployed while my colleague doesn’t have to leave her house?

Have read our health board policy on redeployment and it says all clinical staff should continue coming to work as usual and await redeployment if our role is not essential to fighting COVID. Nothing relevant in there about picking and choosing which staff doing the same job should be redeployed. Just says anyone not doing a job that directly helps the pandemic should attend their usual workplace and await redeployment.

Do I have any rights here to request an explanation? Why does my colleague get what sounds like the better and safer deal? Or do I put up and shut up as I need to accept I can’t be privy to this kind of management info?

I’m absolutely livid about this and actually don’t know why it’s angered me so much. Genuinely feel like packing it in. Why couldn’t we have shared the remaining workload and both worked from home on this and then both been redeployed at the same time? I’m also worried that we’re being told we’re no longer allowed to question decisions like this and just need to obey.

It could be that your colleague has an underlying health condition that would make them more vunerable ?
That you are not aware about ?

We had to fill in a Risk/Health register at work (NHS , I cannot work at home but I do have risks )

Is there any chance she could be pregnant? If she's only a couple of weeks she might not want to tell even close friends yet, but would presumably inform her manager if her new role would put her at increased risk.

Assuming that there is no clear reason that you're not aware of (and I also think there might be something your colleague has told her but doesn't want to tell you, such as early pregnancy) - wouldn't it be equally unfair if you were at home and your colleague redeployed? Surely the boss basically had to flip a coin in the situation you describe?

I think you need to get over it and do your bit to help.

Sorry if that is a bit harsh, but I am working on the front line and there are all sorts of staff who could come and help us but are making all sorts of excuses not to.

Definitely not pregnant and just as healthy as me! She was genuinely puzzled by the decision too. As I say, we’re close friends (studied together at uni) and we know each other inside out!

Based on that, do I have a right to request how the manager came to this decision to place me more at risk than my colleague?

Why couldn’t we have shared the remaining workload and both worked from home on this and then both been redeployed at the same time?

And to this bit - presumably because they'd asked for someone asap?

That’s really hard. I don’t think you can get any explanation for your manager’s decision. If you’re unwilling to take the risks of working in the hospital, resignation seems you’re only option.

Yes you have the right but whether it's the right thing professionally to do is your call. Do you have a union?

If there is still “essential to the cause” work to do within our role, I feel it would have been fairer to share this between both me and my colleague so it would get done in half the time and then we both be redeployed at the same time.

Instead, manager has given this to colleague who will now be at home for a week doing this while I’m going to be redeployed.

I’m happy to help in any way I can and I know this is going to piss off frontline key staff that I’m having a whinge but I have absolutely lost all respect and trust for my manager after today.

I just want to know if she is entitled to tell me nothing or if I can request an explanation of her decision.

Well you could resign, turn your back on patients and colleagues when you are needed or you can get on with it like everybody else is trying to do. Everybody is scared, everybody is stressed. Stay or go. It's up to you.

Might she be a bit rubbish under pressure?

Fair enough they Might have needed someone ASAP and I’m happy I’ll be getting put to good use. However, I am being asked to change my usual work hours, my work environment and put myself at a higher risk than my equal/colleague without an explanation.

It’s the lack of clarity about the decision that’s pissed me off. Why has my manager decided I’m more dispensable than my colleague? That I’m okay to be put more at risk than her? We’re equals but today we were treated unequally without explanation.

What your colleague does is nothing to do with you, you're both individuals and it's fine for you to be assigned different tasks. I'm also being redeployed from my team, we are going 2 or 3 at a time as we tie our current work up. It doesn't matter who is going when, no one has questioned or complained. We're doing our best to support colleagues the best we can.

From a HR perspective then your manager has allocated work to each of you how she has seen fit. And as the manager she can make those decisions as long as it is not clearly disadvantaging others ie giving out a pay band increase with flimsy reasoning or allowing someone to pick and choose when they came to work when they felt like it and not following the general rules

You would have no way of proving that she favoured the other person unless one of them admits to it, so essentially you are challenging your managers managing. The only real way of challenging anything is to ask her nicely for the reasoning. I would think it’s only an issue to escalate if your friend is at home doing nothing at all and it’s a fabricated at home role. Is she going to be doing work from home? Is there enough for only 1 person?

Someone is always going to draw the short straw. You can talk to your manager but I wouldn’t start accusing her of favouritism and being angry as this could reflect really badly on you!

After all she will be redeployed whether now or later... Why does it make you happy to see two people being put at risk?
So many times i was asked to do the worst and most difficult things... And i did it with out fuss...
No your manager doesnt need to explain anything in this situation, its like the military... You just take orders and get on with it... Its going to be difficult, but it is what it is

It’s not the redeployment I’m pissed off about. Of course I need to do what the nhs currently needs.

It’s the fact the manager has decided between two equal staff members that one should redployed while the other can stay home for a week without providing an explanation.

Maybe it was an impossible decision forced upon your manager and they flipped a coin. If thats how they made their decision would you want to know?

I think it makes sense operationally. Better to only risk 1 employees health rather than 2 to do the same job. I’m sorry that it’s you who is put in the line of fire though.

If you get ill then she has your colleague as back up.

Would you be so insistant on an answer if it was the other way around?

Usual home working policy has not been followed. No risk assessment. No application from colleague to work at home. Manager has requested colleague calls her Friday to let her know how she’s getting on with the workload - there will be no daily checks or need to account for her time. I’m told this policy doesn’t have to be followed currently because of the current situation.

There’s one week worth of work for one person. A few days’ work for two people.

Okay so looks like I’m being petty here is the general consensus. Tried today to ask for a reasonable explanation and had my head bit off. I appreciate the HR perspective above, thanks.

A decision had to be made and your manager made it. Even though you're friends, same grade, experience etc etc doesn't mean that every task has to be the same.

I think you’re being quite silly and in a week you will both be doing the same job so I don’t really understand making a song and dance about, I think you will look back on this as a very minor issue in a couple of months time. Pick your battles.

Of course home working policy hasn't been followed through. Everyone who can work from home needs to work from home and it would be negligent for any workplace to delay that by putting through applications.

I think manager probably had to make a quick decision, maybe you can raise the issue after all of this, I think now is not the right time.

I know it sucks...
But we've just got to suck it up and get on with it I'm afraid.
I'm going to be redeployed probably from Monday as our outpatient work has ceased, we all need to work together, be kind and get through this.
I'm hoping I get redeployed to a low risk area as my DH is immunocompromised, and on other medication that makes him high risk, matron is going to try and get me in a low risk area.

I don't think you need a reason or explanation, it is what it is.
There will come a point where
everyone will just be helping out.

It's a pandemic, you're not being moved just Because they fancy it for a laugh.