What is with all the furlough bashing

[whatisforteamum]

I have noticed since some lockdown.measures were.eased a lot of resentment has built uptowards those on furlough.Scenes of people crowding on the beach probably didn't help!.
My own dm commented that furlough needed to stop until I explained to her that many cannot return to work yet.Fast forward to now and she commented it is costing too much which I can understand however I work in hospitality and have worked for 36 years in the trade and dh has always worked too.I also appreciate that apart from redundancies our jobs may have less hours due.to less customers for months or years.Comments about siting pretty even though dhs money is now below minimum wage.!
So what is it with furlough people being looked down upon?I didnt.ask for this though very much.appreciate the scheme.I don't know why people assume we are lazy when I normally work 55 hour weeks.Does anyone else feel the backlash?

.. That should have read self employed, not employed!

I also recall threads with many saying they’d never date or entertain associations with a man who was out of work.
As if this is synonymous with Wayne and waynetta slob.

It’d be a good thing if this sort of prejudice and presumption simply fucked off out of our society.
Usually driven by tabloids, divisive, ugly stuff.

Same reasons that teachers are getting it.

Jealousy, perceived benefits, too much time in front of a screen, being a bit on edge and quick to anger, the fact that this whole thing hasn't been fair in any way.

No bashing here. I really feel for people on furlough. No one who likes and /or values their job would choose that option. My SIL is an employment lawyer and she is working flat out advising small and medium sized companies who don't have an HR department about how to progress redundancies which will apply almost exclusively to furloughed workers. She predicts an enormous redundancy crisis, and I wouldn't begrudge anyone facing that a chance to enjoy some sunshine before the shit hits the fan.

It says something if a company has furloughed some employees and not others, which makes it a bitter pill to swallow for those furloughed.

People think that anyone who is not near suicide during lockdown is enjoying it, that enjoying it is synonymous with wishing to extend it, and that wishing to extend it is synonymous with actually having the wherewithal to extend it.

If the furloughed and those pesky teachers would just stop making Corona happen we could all go back to normal already...

Yes, I don't think there are any winners.

People who aren't furloughed resent those who have been for being on a 'paid holiday' (despite the fact that they haven't been able to do much!).

People who are furloughed aren't able to enjoy their 'time off' as they're worried about redundancy and their future.

Living in a state of uncertainty, as most of us are, is incredibly difficult.

spending huge chunks of furlough money on foreign holidays for the end of the year

How? People were only getting 80% of salary up to quite a low limit. I don't think anyone on furlough is loaded, unless, as pp's have said, they've been able to find a (well-paid) role during lockdown. Which they presumably haven't if they've been on the beach, having BBQs and doing lots of DIY (and how have they managed that when the tips were closed for so long).

I haven't said anything nasty either to anyone I know or anonymously online but the truth is I'm insanely jealous of the people at my work who got furloughed. They got topped up to 100% and it has been repeatedly emphasised that there will be no relationship between being furloughed and being selected for redundancy. I've been working at home with a nearly two year old, on corona response stuff so doing unfamiliar work with people I don't know who haven't been pleasant to work with, frequently working until midnight. I suspect I'm at high risk of redundancy (I'm the only one on my team who wouldn't qualify for redundancy pay, and I suspect the impact on my work of being the only one with a child hasn't done me any favours) and they've imposed a universal pay freeze including no movement up the pay scale, which I was expecting to do. So yeah, I do wish I'd been one of the furloughed people and it is a little bit hard not to be resentful, though I'm trying hard not to resent them personally.

Personally I think that Furlough was essential as it was nobody’s fault that this came and changed their lives. I think that some people will have benefitted from it and others not so much. The government had to move quickly and they did.

My dm.Who keeps mentioning it is a bit jealous I think.She was a sahm so relied on df for money.Ironically barely went out to work,not saying sahm isn't hard work.
To the posters upthread who enquired if I would think badly of anyone on benefits for disabilities...I have a MH issues that would qualify for long term illness but I feel working has a good therapeutic advantages and a bit more money .I also have a db who is reliant on benefits since his relationship ended and he found himself homeless.I know he has little money to live on,what I meant by no fault of my own was that I cannot work in a pub if pubs were ordered to close.If I lose my job I will look instantly and always have my eye on my next workplace.
I suppose I hadn't thought of it as.jealousy.No one has ever been jealous of me working all Xmas and summer and evenings.They know I love my trade though.
Good luck to everyone furloughed and I hope we can get back to our previous jobs or find the energy to do something else.

It's just fear. People are beginning to realise things are about to get very impoverished.

In some cases people have seen their workload increase dramatically to cover their furloughed colleagues. Of course this is the fault of the company who shouldn’t have furloughed staff it had work for, but some people are extremely overworked right now, alongside having children at home. It must grate when they see furloughed colleagues posting about sunbathing in the garden etc.

@cologne4711 I don't know how they've managed it, but the person in question has booked up a very expensive holiday in December, and another one next year and keeps telling the rest of our group of friends what they've planned/booked for it. I wonder if they've taken a mortgage break and are rediverting the money? It's none of my business, but it does make it all that tad harder for those of us who are working harder and later, for less money with prospects for their industry not looking good..

I do know plenty of people on furlough, and most are trying to make the most of being off work while worried, are volunteering, sewing for the NHS, or lonely (less so now thankfully). But I can understand how, if people had many furloughed friends/contacts like the one above, they'd be bashing.

As user1972548274 says, this attitude has always been aimed at the unemployed and the disabled.

Remember all those many MN threads where people were reminded that we're all only one accident or illness away from being in the same position? And the replies of "Well it will never happen to me! I've made plans and I've been careful!"?

Well the furloughed are an awkward reminder that even if you've made cast-iron plans and have a job that most people would consider to be secure, all of that can disappear at any moment. And it doesn't matter if you can cling on to your own job - because the loss of other industries can still have a ripple effect on your own income. And the lack of childcare and available school places can reduce your ability (and that of any employees) to do that job.

So they have to re-write the narrative and say that it's the fault of the furloughed: 'They're lazy. They should get back to work. They're the problem.'

Because now they can go back to pretending that if things go wrong, it's that section of society's own fault: 'They haven't tried hard enough. They haven't got a can-do attitude. They need to get back to work."

And has been mentioned on this thread, this is what teachers are currently facing - even though they've been working all along.

No judgement here. Lots of my friends have been furloughed and many know that redundancy is likely for those in sales, entertainment, hospitality etc. Plus I like work and I’d be going out of my mind if I’d been without work for several months. I’ve been WFH more or less full time and still enjoying lunchtime, evening and weekend sunshine and occasionally a slope off early on a Friday afternoon.

I do judge perfectly healthy and able-bodied people under 45 whose risk of severe illness or death if they catch Covid insisting it’s still too dangerous for them to go back to work and wanting furlough and lockdown to continue for them indefinitely. They’re either ridiculous or just enjoying the free ride a bit too much.

I'm working more hours than ever covering for people who are furloughed and admit that there are times when I do feel very jealous of them as they've been effectively paid to do all the little household jobs that I have to fit around my extended working hours as well as being able to read, play music, go for bike rides, sit in the sun etc.

And at the end of the day, I won't be thought any more of or get anything extra financially or otherwise when everything gets back to normal. So yes there is some (imo entirely natural) resentment but I would never have a go at anyone because of it. Its a shit situation on all fronts.

@Blobby10 I completely understand how you feel, and anyone would feel the same.
My husband has worked almost without a day off since the start of this whilst many of his colleagues are furloughed.

I'm his case, and many other cases it is telling who is kept on and they will be remembered for it. As I said further down thread my SIL who is an employment lawyer and all of her practice are mostly dealing with SMEs needing advice on making staff redundant, who are almost without exception on furlough.

Chaotic45 we aren't planning on making anyone redundant - everyone here has at least 20 years service and have been here since they left school. I guess I should have added that I'm effectively running the place for my dad who at 75 is in the shielding group much to his disgust but mum hasn't been well and he doesn't want to put her at risk! So whatever I do or don't do I would never get any recognition other than the supposed 'glory' of being in charge . Which I might do if I wasn't so bloody exhausted from all the stress of it . Hope your husband comes out of this OK 😊

Being furloughed has been dreadful for some peoples mental health.

The isolation, the anxiety, the feelings of worthlessness and powerlessness, lost of self-esteem and self-worth.

With the likelihood of impending redundancy in a recession, having been out of the workplace for many months and lost vital skills, contacts and confidence.

I feel sorry for the people who are furloughed. It must be a big big worry and let's be honest being stuck indoors (or in your garden) for 3 months must be hard work. It sounds good doesn't it? I don't think it will be though and I also pity people having to work from home and look after their kids - that would be a nightmare.

I can understand that blobby10 and I am certain I would feel the same.I can understand if colleagues are.covering for those furloughed.I do resent anyone who doesn't work complaining of giving me,us comments when we.do have savings and have always.worked.I don't feel guilty as I cannot work in my industry that.is currently closed.