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Covid

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Original poster

Wish I wasn't a teacher because of Covid

952 replies

NebularNerd · 27/08/2020 20:08

In my family/friends circle, I am the only one who will be face to face with 150+ people per day with no PPE, no social distancing, nothing.

I have one relative who is not expecting to return to the office this year.
Another who now only works in the office two days per week, in a building where numbers are severely restricted, one way systems, spaced out desks etc.
Another friend who is also able to wfh for the foreseeable future.

I can't help but think that had I made a different career choice I would not now be faced with contracting a potentially life threatening virus and passing it on to my clinically extremely vulnerable husband or elderly parents.

I will go to work and try to ignore what's going on in the world and do my best. But I wish I could be made to feel safer - screens, masks, fewer pupils, something.

I hope I'm worrying for nothing, but it is getting difficult to sleep at night.

OP posts:

Thread gallery

loulouljh · 30/08/2020 13:20

I really fear for the future of this country. For goodness sake people need to get a grip. The risks are miniscule. The risk of fannying around and dilly dallying any further are far greater to our economies, wider health etc.

Flaxmeadow · 30/08/2020 13:28

Nope we had multiple threads on tinpot jobsworths stopping people from going in to the shop because the numbers allowed in the shop were reduced.

What has this to do with it?

So some people were complaining about the protections that retail workers have/had.

No. Please find the multiple threads from retail staff complaining?

I know there was not multiple threads because I'm a retail worker and contributed to the only one or two threads on it and kept an eye on them and there was hardly any complaints

Now we have literally ever other thread about teachers and they are increasing. There must be dozens of them now

Original poster

NebularNerd · 30/08/2020 13:30

Schools are opening next week, there is no question about that. Some are already open.

Teachers will not have any protection other than hand washing.

I hope that the risk is minuscule and my colleagues and I won't catch it.

However, I suspect it's only a matter of time before a pupil or teacher catches it, transmits it and schools begin to close, as has already happened in Scotland and other countries.

So ultimately, the lack of protection for teachers will impact on parents, too, as children have to self isolate or their schools close.

As winter approaches even the health secretary has spoken about the very real threat of a second wave.

To deny teachers any protection in the work place might not have an immediate impact, but I suspect that it will only be a matter of weeks before there is major disruption as a result of the virus which is still with us, despite how much we wish it wasn't.

OP posts:

FrippEnos · 30/08/2020 13:31

Flaxmeadow

The point is that someone will always complain.

Just like you are about people wanting the same protect that you have received.

FrippEnos · 30/08/2020 13:32

Now we have literally ever other thread about teachers and they are increasing. There must be dozens of them now

You don't have to read them.
Just don't be surprised if the schools close due to lack of staff.
And you can't go to work.

Houndabouttown · 30/08/2020 13:35

OP what protection would you advise was given to teachers? What would make you feel safe?

Original poster

NebularNerd · 30/08/2020 13:36

@Houndabouttown

OP what protection would you advise was given to teachers? What would make you feel safe?

Masks for all, as a start.

OP posts:

Appuskidu · 30/08/2020 13:36

@FrippEnos

Now we have literally ever other thread about teachers and they are increasing. There must be dozens of them now

You don't have to read them.
Just don't be surprised if the schools close due to lack of staff.
And you can't go to work.

Exactly! The people demanding schools go back exactly as before will probably be the ones most pissed off when their children’s school keeps closing!

Original poster

NebularNerd · 30/08/2020 13:38

This graphic from the British Medical Journal illustrates the benefits of face coverings. Currently, classrooms will be in the red all of the time.

Wish I wasn't a teacher because of Covid

OP posts:

Houndabouttown · 30/08/2020 13:43

@NebularNerd

Mask guidance has changed for secondary. Other teachers in this thread have commented ‘it protects the children not us. So it seems a bit pointless’, which I don’t think is a particularly nice attitude.

The evidence for masks is quite variable to be honest and I think it’s unreasonable to expect small children to wear them. There are loads of posts of adults complaining they steam up their glasses etc. It’s difficult to hear with them on. I personally wear one at work and find it tolerable but others don’t.

I think people need to accept the risk that comes with people facing jobs or they need to leave if they feel they can’t do that.

Houndabouttown · 30/08/2020 13:45

You’ll probably feel less anxious once you get going and things feel more ‘normal’. The longer away from something, the scarier it is sometimes.

FrippEnos · 30/08/2020 13:48

@loulouljh

I was going to ignore you but having thought on the matter.

Everyone agrees that schools need to be open to the children, For whatever reasons.

But what seems to be dividing people is what needs to be done in order for schools to stay open.

Scotland, Israel, Korea, France etc. have already proved that teachers will get the virus and if they do so in sufficient quantities that schools will have to close.

So why are the government not putting in preventative measures to ensure that schools stay open?

And it needs to be more than a sentence in a badly written piece of guidance.

for all of the rubbish about "well shops, nurses, care homes,police didn't have any at the start" is irrelevant.

We know what needs to be done yet people are ignoring it and hoping for the best.

you can already see the type of complaints that will be thrown about when/if schools have to close and people have to time off work to look after their children.

FrippEnos · 30/08/2020 13:50

Houndabouttown

I think it’s unreasonable to expect small children to wear them.

No-one is asking small children to wear masks but the WHO recommends masks for ages of 11 and up.

Houndabouttown · 30/08/2020 13:52

@FrippEnos

Agree. Secondary guidance has changed. It was OP who said masks for all.

Happyinmyownworld · 30/08/2020 13:53

It's definitely rubbish. It's taken the positives out of the job. I can fully sympathize with that. You trained to teach and enjoy teaching. You never knew life would be this way. A little different but when I was pregnant a midwife left because she said it's just not the same anymore. It's all technology and all the personal touches were gone. The hospital closed the labour ward too so she was hardly delivering. I completely understood why she had lost her love for the job. Just like I understand teachers being fed up. It obviously will vary massively from school to school. A little village school compared to a London primary school in the city will massively vary in risk. I think it should have been gradual returns through September so they could work out if they were pushing it. I don't personally fear the virus as much as I fear the changes. I am completely disheartened at the new normal. I hate it. It's really affected my mindset and my last be of life. There's a huge mental health problem alongside all of it. I hope you are ok.

Original poster

NebularNerd · 30/08/2020 13:54

To clarify, I meant masks for all in secondary, in line with WHO recommendations.

OP posts:

Flaxmeadow · 30/08/2020 13:57

The point is that someone will always complain.

Some more than others

Just like you are about people wanting the same protect that you have received

I didnt receive any PPE.

I don't remember there being multiple threads of complaints by retail staff like there is now from teachers and retail staff were at much higher risk. It's crazy the amount of teacher/coronavirus threads there are

Appuskidu · 30/08/2020 14:00

@NebularNerd

To clarify, I meant masks for all in secondary, in line with WHO recommendations.

This is a no-brainer as far as I’m concerned! My DC would be happy to wear a mask for school; they already wear them for work and on the bus. They probably won’t wear them at school unless told to, though.

As I’ve said before, I’d have the part of the guidance removed where it says schools can’t ask fo evidence of a negative test before a child returns to school. That’s ridiculous.

I’d make it so that in primary, bubbles stayed as class bubbles for a month. So school staff/visitors/volunteers weren’t crossing numerous bubbles.

FrippEnos · 30/08/2020 14:08

Flaxmeadow

So no screens went up at the checkout, and no social distancing in the shop?

I find that hard to believe.

As for the threads, you don't remember, I do.
memory is like that (not in a bad way)

As for retail workers being at a higher risk at that point time. Fine

But I for one would like to keep the risk as low as possible for everyone.

Isn't that the sensible thing to do?

SaltyAndFresh · 30/08/2020 14:12

[quote Houndabouttown]@NebularNerd

I think people need to accept the risk that comes with people facing jobs or they need to leave if they feel they can’t do that.[/quote]
No no, parents are going to have to accept that schools won't consistently be open if they keep denying the need for any kind of risk mitigation at all. It's mask or social distancing, which means blended learning, whether you like it or not.

I think the govt knows this but is pressing ahead with full reopening while numbers are low, so they can get parents back to offices. They won't give a shit that you can't work once it all goes tits up.

madcow88 · 30/08/2020 14:12

Riaroth that is not true!! Flu has a much higher death and infection rate than Covid!

Flaxmeadow · 30/08/2020 14:35

So no screens went up at the checkout, and no social distancing in the shop?

No not back then

I find that hard to believe.

Why?

It wasnt until the end of May and June that screens were put up and hand sanitiser was available for customers. By then the numbers were coming way down

As for the threads, you don't remember, I do.
memory is like that (not in a bad way)

Provide them then. Post all these dozens of threads you say exist

There was only 2 very short retail threads that I remember, and hardly any complaining in them, and they are easy to find.

As for retail workers being at a higher risk at that point time. Fine

But my point is there was nothing the complaints from teachers we see now and the risk was far higher for retail staff

But I for one would like to keep the risk as low as possible for everyone.

But the risks are not high now but we have multiple teacher threads of many pages acting as its still March and April

Isn't that the sensible thing to do?

Sensible but there is no perspective on the teacher threads. The complaining is way out of proportion to the risk

Appuskidu · 30/08/2020 14:41

@Flaxmeadow