Why have we not heard complaining fro people working in private sector?

[mywayhighway]

You’d think the only people working at the moment were public sector. DH and I have luckily worked throughout the lockdown, DH is in construction, they have cracked on and found a way around every Covid19 related issue quietly and without fuss. Exactly the same in my workplace (manufacturing). Mainly it’s not rocket science. You don’t hear complaints from supermarket staff or smaller shops keepers.
I’m getting increasingly angry at sectors refusing to get back to work and it’s always public sector jobs where they have big unions and guaranteed wages and no threat of being laid off. Things need to dramatically change, people need to accept the risks and get back to work or hand their notice in. Schools are a prime example and next it’s going to be NHS therapies. Can’t they see they’re refusing to do their job is ultimately going to cause more deaths and have a much detrimental impact than Covid19 long term? Why are public sector workers so special?

There are so many jobs where social distancing is impossible, so it will be a while before they can get back to normal . So YABU.

Police are another example of public sector staff that have certainly still been working. I have seen police around this area more often during lockdown than I would do in normal times.

So sad we have such a race to the bottom society. "Its shit for me so it might as well be shit for you too". Would be a nice change for all the negative posters of MN to start bashing the government and hold them to account rather than moaning about workers and sectors they have no relevant experience or suitable knowledge of.

Construction is never a great example. No paid sick leave across much of industry. Lots of subcontracting. Even precovid one of the most dangerous industries and very high risk for death by suicide.

It’s definitely on the list of occupations with highest number of Covid deaths (along with taxi drivers and security personnel).

But good to hear they have put in safety measures and agree we need to be solutions focussed

@multivac that’s the most wishy washy thing I’ve read and says nothing new at all. You need to use common sense here.

mywayhighway - have you read the document to which it refers?

I'm private sector for a global tech company. No change at our work - busy as ever and we've worked through at 100% capacity with the entire workforce WFH. No furloughs. However, of course we wouldn't be complaining - we can WFH. As can a lot (though admittedly not all) of the private sector.

Teachers have a fair point in feeling concerned though. I personally find it hard to feel comfortable sending DCs to nursery or school in a few weeks and they're children - with less likelihood of getting v ill. If I was a teacher I'd be worried about my health and my families health. I also see absolutely no reason why the government are refusing to allow basic PPE to be worn by teachers/school support staff - whereas many other public facing roles have this requirement. No scientific reasoning or evidence has been provided to explain their decision to disallow PPE too which I find worrying.

@MoreW1ne no sector can wait until we are risk free and anyone thinking that way needs to hand their notice in today.

And I know lots of people who work at my local council must be very busy, as we get a constant stream of updates from our local councillor about measures the council is taking in response to the pandemic, whether it's putting in place measures at the crematorium to deal with the huge increase in numbers of funerals or putting in place traffic measures to make it safer to cycle into work.

There's a difference between risk free and adequate risk management and mitigation - some sectors face higher risks and have a greater respect for health and safety - but perhaps your household experience of construction (which as a pp illustrates doesn't have the best H&S track record) means you've become conditioned to accept lower standards.

All of us going to work are risking catching Covid19 and taking it back to their family. It’s not going away anytime soon. If that’s unacceptable you need to give your notice in.

Because they won't get paid if they don't go in.

Construction went on as it's possible to social distance while doing it?

Not the case for teaching young children?

I believe there are a group of people trying to find out the risks and set out guidelines so that teachers can work safely, just as you have a HSE to do so for your business.

They are called unions.

No head can write a risk assessment if we don't know the risk from having 15 children together without social distancing. I haven't seen anyone in the private sector put their name to a risk assessment of these conditions which states it is safe to come back to work.

Where treatments/operations have been cancelled, it's because hospital management have made that decision as part of preparations for an influx of Covid-19 patients

Or because it would be too risky right now. Please stop perpetuating the myth that covid-19 is being prioritised over everything else.

Oh wait, you don’t believe there’s a risk.

@myrtleWilson agreed my dh and his colleagues are probably at an overall higher risk than you but not one has refused to come to work.

All of us going to work are risking catching Covid19 and taking it back to their family

Ah, I see where your confusion is. Teachers are not, on the whole, primarily worried about the risk of 'catching Covid19 and taking it back to their family' (although of course that will be on their minds, as it is on yours). They are concerned about the risk to wider society of increasing the transmission rate of the disease to the point where the health service is unable to cope with it.

@Barbie222 you’d be surprised at how many social distancing aspects there are in construction and manufacturing.

@tamsintamsout I take the Covid-19 risk very seriously. If you're in any doubt about that, take a look at lots of my other recent posts.

@tamsintamsout I’ve said many times on here we’re living with the risk.

* However, I am still confused about how kids can all get into school recieved a decent education and keep the r rate down. Especially as teacher won't have to go in of someone in their household is shielding.*

I'm not expecting all the kids to get into school, and I'm not expecting my children to receive a decent education when the do return to school (school, for me isn't just about academic education), or that the r rate will be kept down.
I'm just expecting the parents who are fine for their children to return to send them in, and for my children to see their school friends and teachers for real, not via Zoom (even from 2 meters) as I need to think of their mental health as well as physically health, and that the low-R rate in London means that the risks are minimal.
If teachers are shielding, or living with someone shielding, I would certainly not expect them to return to work.

For me, it's not one size fits all - each school should make their own risk assessment, as should every family.

I've not seen a construction site with 1500 young people, hundreds adults, no PPE equipment and no social distancing.
I think any site operating like that would have been front page news.

@myrtleWilson that’s why the government are monitoring the r number.

I am a public sector worker and all of my colleagues are working significantly above and beyond - social workers, carers, family support workers, bin men, housing workers. Our parking wardens have been redeployed to deliver food to vulnerable people etc

Your employer and your husband’s employer have put in place safe working practices that allow you to return to your site of work - that’s all teachers want.

@NewHome2020 but you can do that now. Meet your child's friends at 2 meters.

I agree that children's mental health is a real concern. I am not huge supporter of lockdown anyway.

But there are huge problems with some schools opening and not others. Some kids getting an education and not others.

And schools can not open just for social purposes.

I do agree each family should be making their own risk assessments and acting on those.

There are so many jobs where social distancing is impossible, so it will be a while before they can get back to normal .
But they still can work. The guidance is “where possible” in regards to social distancing. Unless it’s a job place closed by the government.