School closed....isolate..no pay

[swimmingc]

So had a message to say DS bubble at school has closed. Ds is 7. He has to isolate so I have to take 14 days off work unpaid. I have worked through lockdown and am lucky to have not been furloughed but AIBU to think now I have to take 14 days unpaid leave off work I should be entitled to some kind of pay. I can not afford to lose 14 days pay. No other childcare option. No annual leave as work term time. Feel like crying.
What are everyone else in same position doing?

our NHS trust offers 80:20 in this situation
80% of pay then 20% of annual leave or unpaid leave

@Carriemac do they offer that for every period of isolation, bearing in mind this could happen multiple times?

There is so much misinformation on this thread .

There seems to be a big gap in that there's no support available for parents whose kids have to isolate despite the fact you can't leave an 8yo to SI on his own!

All I can really add OP is don't be afraid to put some pressure on DS's dad. He may have an Important Job but so do you! It's shit, I'm sorry

dunno - it does'nt apply to me as my kid are older just saw it on the managers bulletin. we have had no covid deaths with staff despite 16k workforce so the Trust are very good at minding staff

I can't find out where I saw that self isolation triggers SSP sorry @swimmingc. Are you in a Union? Ask them

I guess it all comes down to 'who pays the bill for covid?'.
Should the state cover 100% of the shortfall ( = taxpayers), or state + companies, or state + companies + individuals?
Ideally we would have a fund for situations such as the OP's but who pays for this fund... and how do you prevent people from declaring they need to isolate every so often because they fancy two weeks off work.

@swimmingc

The thing is, I could ring work and say I am sick and I would get full sick pay, just because it is childcare issues I get nothing.

this is what I would do in your situation. It might be wrong but it isn't your fault. I also work for the nhs

SI only triggers SSP if it there is a person with symptoms in the family or if it is the OP that was told to isolate due to contact with a case. It does not apply if the OP needs to care for a child that is isolating with no symptoms

It does not apply if the OP needs to care for a child that is isolating with no symptoms
Presumably in this situation, OP's rent and bills won't need to be paid and Tesco will deliver their shopping for free??

(Sarcastic)

HNRTT but if you are NHS then have you tried applying for special leave with pay - contact HR rather than your line manager and explain the circumstances?

Good luck.

I'm just telling you the rules. Didn't say that I agreed with them

Are you claiming Universal Credit. I would have thought if you have to take the time off unpaid UC will temporarily increase to make up some (but not all) of the short-fall. I'm term-time and paid monthly depending on my prev months hours or it's not averaged over 12 months so months where I do less or even none (like July) it goes up considerably. Not to full amount (as some wages disregarded then for every pound I earn I get to keep about 30p of that..) but more.

I'm just telling you the rules. Didn't say that I agreed with them
Sorry, I sounded angry at you.

I am not at all angry at you, just the idiotic system.

Apologies

The whole thing is a disgrace.

But on a practical note.. If you need to pay for some child care could you afford it?
There are so many young unemployed people who could come in and babysit.
My unemployed 20 Yr old has done this for several families already in Central London.
She put flyers around her local area offering short notice child care, ad hoc hours etc... And has had lots of calls.

If you need to pay for some child care could you afford it?

The child is isolating though!

@Theredjellybean her dc is isolating which means no one can come to the house

If you’re nhs you get paid parental leave of 10 days! Check with hr or see if there’s a role you can do from home over that period.

It's awful. I am waiting for my niece to be tested and may have to isolate for 14 days. Me and partner are both self employed and will get nothing. I don't understand how people are expected to do it.

I wonder if the government will go the same way of saying students (and teachers) don't need to isolate after a confirmed positive but they must all wear masks in classrooms? One softens the blow of the other I guess.

There must be SOMEONE in your son's bubble who can help you out? Have you asked?

I truly sympathise, I do. But equally, what would you do if your child had measles, or chicken pox or mumps? You'd be in the same situation? A child with an infectious disease (potentially in this case) You must have some sort of back up system or how do you cope normally?

I personally didn't go back to 'normal' work for precisely this reason ie I don't have a reliable back up plan. I'm now self employed which gives me far more flexibility.

Also, you said you were lucky enough not to have been furloughed. So you've probably not had to take advantage of mortgage holidays etc. Is that something you could look into now? Savings? I know people will feel they shouldn't have to, but lets be honest, plenty of us have already had no choice but to go down that route.

@StarCat2020 It may be 2020 but that's already the case. My husbands work regularly makes him work long hours (talking 6am - 6pm) and says things like, surely your wife can sort the kids out.

@Livelovebehappy

I think the NHS should put something in place for this situation, although I know that doesn’t help in the here and now OP. If you share child care with the other parent you mentioned, who is in the same position, and then get the parental leave of 2 days you say you may be elegible for, then at least that only leaves three days to try and sort. And to posters suggesting that the North will struggle due to less people able to wfh - really? We have offices and professionals up here too you know. Most of the people I know are currently wfh. Why would you think we don’t ?

I was just about to comment on that weird statement too. The great North/South divide myth strides on regardless.

@mumwon. In the one case my d moved in with family for the self isolation period. So became part of household.

But its mad... The op can go out.. She doesn't have to self isolate unless her ds develops symptoms. So what is the difference to a single person coming in to look after child?
No different to the suggestions to form a bubble with another family from the school.
My d has gone in cared for isolating child and gone home and isolated herself in her flat.

The child is meant to be isolating not being looked after by other people. It is rubbish, but it somewhat defeats the object if you get various people to look after them

I’m the same. Self employed and business is already down a third. If my kids get sent home I can’t earn. It’s stressful. No answers just feel your pain x