If schools aren’t back to normal sept?

[gingajewel]

If schools aren’t back to normal September and you are back to work what are you planning to do? Also do you think the key worker provision will stay for September or do you think it will only available to the summer holidays?

Juggle working from home between me and my partner. Basically we each do some days in the office and some from home. This does require agreement but I think the advisable to work from home when you can will stay as advice making it harder for them to insist on five days in the office. I only work part time so will have to juggle home Ed around but think I will look to affording a tiptoe first the younger child as I think the learning list will be too great for an academic year, this would also take some of the pressure off.

If we did not have some work at home option we would be screwed though so sympathy for those without that option.

Sorry should say afford a tutor for the youngest (who will concentrate on English which is where he struggles)

I’m a keyworker so they might be back. I haven’t needed the provision as I’ve been WFH but back in September. If they don’t accommodate key workers, I will have to give up my job and become a SAHM, as with three kids in different year groups it wouldn’t be possible for me to work. The thought doesn’t bother me too much to be honest, we would be poorer, but we would break even on the bills and I can easily return to the sector.

There would be literally no money left in the pot though after bills, zero.

As I work in a school I'd be classed as a key worker and could send my youngest to school. But work have been very flexible and I think I'd be doing less hours/some stuff from home. Oldest could do home learning while DH works at home.

There's going to be a major issue for lots of people if schools are not back to normal by September. I'm a senior manager and director of a medium-sized company. We've been very flexible so far with allowing employees to work from home or reduce their hours etc.

However, this is not sustainable if the business is to survive. So we're about to announce that from September 1st, all staff will be required to work their normal contracted hours and any extra as required by the needs of the business. We'll also no longer be allowing any staff to work from home.

At the end of the day, I suspect some staff may have to resign for childcare reasons.

We know for certain that schools in Scotland won't be back to normal. We will be carrying on like we are now - working 6am to 8pm between us, splitting work and childcare time.

I'd be screwed, the same as I am now.
DC will be feral animals with wild unbrushed hair spending all day in their pants. Their lunch will consist of jelly beans washed down with undiluted squash and their education will be delivered by cartoon characters with dubious language.
The only exercise they will get is sporadic fights over the remote control and I will be constantly shouting at them the only 2 words I can think of shut up.

Apart from these few minor glitches everything will be rosy.

French are you doing this so the mothers leave and you don't have to pay any redundancy?

Pretty poor............

Eh? French said it wasn’t sustainable for their company to survive.

I'll be screwed and may have to quit. This means we our screwed as we cant pay our bills.

I think that if part-time education is the only option as I predict, then parents may well have to work around the allocation they receive.
Presumably, still with the caveats that if spaces are needed for key worker children these allocations are lost.

I wonder if some companies and orgs who previously kept Mon-Fri daytime hours will become more flexible in their timing and allow shifts to accommodate. They too may still have to be keeping social distancing so fewer staff members in at a time might be helpful.

I'm in Scotland. All students will be back on August 11, but I've been told that it will be 1.5 days per week at school and the rest done at home. It's going to be very, very difficult to keep going through months and months of this. My youngest is really struggling with it.

@FrenchSeal Directors of companies like yours should hang their heads in shame.

Why can't they work from home @FrenchSeal?

What do you think the sex split on the resignations is likely to be?

@FrenchSeal. I 100% agree with you. At our workplace we're all back in except one person who keeps using her children as an excuse. We're key workers so she can get a school place but refuses to use it. It's really difficult for those who work closely with her to work properly with her being away from the workplace. Our employer is very supportive....but how is it fair on everyone else who has to come in?

@FrenchSeal

There's going to be a major issue for lots of people if schools are not back to normal by September. I'm a senior manager and director of a medium-sized company. We've been very flexible so far with allowing employees to work from home or reduce their hours etc.

However, this is not sustainable if the business is to survive. So we're about to announce that from September 1st, all staff will be required to work their normal contracted hours and any extra as required by the needs of the business. We'll also no longer be allowing any staff to work from home.

At the end of the day, I suspect some staff may have to resign for childcare reasons.

@FrenchSeal what is the business case for not allowing any work from home? How much productivity has actually been lost from staff working reduced hours?

@Rosehip10 why on earth should she hang her head in shame? For 6 months they will have allowed home working when she clearly says it’s not sustainable for the business to survive that way. So they’ve done the best they can. It is unfortunate but many businesses cannot operate properly with people not physically at work. They will have tried for months to help. It isn’t the fault of the business and they can only do what they can. It’s not like they’ve not tried is it?!

I may have to seriously reduce my hours with a poor prospect of clawing them back. My industry will take a corona-hit, and increasing hours won't be an option for a long time. Our family will have much less disposable income.

Or, I hire a super-flexible nanny who can deal with the changing circumstances. This will cost more than reducing my hours - but maybe a better choice long term?

My husband makes more than me, so the family economics are simple and ragingly unfair. He is a bit older and did not take three maternity leaves, rarely left work early to take a kid to swim lessons, and so has had a smoother path through promotion. The structural inequalities make me weep.

Everyone is bleating on about children's mental health. This is going to be devastating for women. Hello 1955, would you like my doctorate back?

@Ylvamoon that made me smile.. as long as the pants are changed occasionally then you're doing all you can and the lunch plans sound lovely.

If this continues into September,I fear that for many people the decision as to whether to leave their job will be taken out of their hands as the economy crumbles away

@FrenchSeal

You were a solicitor pretty much working normally from home in another thread.

I have been told by our school that even the years eligible to go back are now on a waiting list and when I said I would need a keyworker place from September I was told again they have to go on the waiting list for that too!

Companies like @FrenchSeal ‘s won’t survive anyway because with more employers embracing homeworking, future employees will vote with their feet. The workforce WILL remember the employees that clung blindly to their needless presenteeism.

Home working is not sustainable for our business as we are a creative company- we need staff to collaborate with each other, share ideas and talk to clients.

Zoom is not a replacement for meeting face to face and discussing strategy and plans.

I appreciate that some people prefer working from home, but our productivity has nosedived over the last few months. Trying to work while supervising DC is simply not feasible (although I realise why it has been necessary). We've also had numerous clients complaining about babies and DC interrupting our virtual meetings and conference calls with them.