How many teachers will be handing in the section 44 letter tomorrow and not going in?

[SoscaredforJan]

My DSis is scared to go to work tomorrow in a private primary school in Tier 3 but lowish numbers. She is not ECV but has got chemo damaged lungs so it petrified of catching Covid.

She desperately wants to follow union advice and not go in tomorrow but she’s worried that most teachers will be in as normal, she will have a black Mark against her and will be quietly pushed out.

Are there many teachers on here planning not to go in tomorrow? What do you think will happen tomorrow?

@panpeter can you go off sick.

How the hell is it "literally life and death"

1/. You're not garaunteed to catch it
2/. That's still true even if you're sleeping with the person who has it.

So that immediately stops it being "literally life and death"

Being hysterical doesn't help. It doesn't make people take it any more seriously so calm down.

@PanPeter

I’m a TA. I’ll be going in, but I’m 30 weeks pregnant and have been advised to do admin etc by my midwife. This isn’t available for me to do, and so I’ll be working in a classroom with over 32 people in. I cannot socially distance and the answer I got when I asked how to do this effectively I was told “you just have to”. I’m frightened something may happen to me after it taking us 5 years to get this baby.

You need to obtain a sicknote asap. Please don't go in.

My union has advised us not to submit a section 44. Basically it should protect us against dismissal but it won't and it will take years to fight and in the meantime we'll have no job and no reference.

@manicinsomniac

mumneedswine I don't know what their membership is but, given there are 2 main unions and 500,000 teachers in the UK, I would imagine NEU membership should be around 200,000. I know lots of teachers who have left. As well as lots who have stayed. Opinion is incredibly divided of course. But I don't think it's right to say teachers are overwhelmingly in support of closures. The unions just shout more loudly.

400,000 people viewed the live stream of the meeting this morning.

What a shit show , I feel for anyone that works in a school right now. We will lose fabulous teachers who have just had enough , not to mention the mental strain them and all for Boris to no doubt do a U turn next week and announce all schools will close .

The rates are skyrocketing so fast that ALL schools will be closed within the next week or two. We are entering uncharted territory now.

A cavalier attitude won’t protect you from Covid.

I sent mine in today! A lot are scared to do it!

@CheesecakeAddict

My union has advised us not to submit a section 44. Basically it should protect us against dismissal but it won't and it will take years to fight and in the meantime we'll have no job and no reference.

But I presume your union has advised you to ask for an updated risk assessment in light of the high community transmission plus new variant? Should achieve the same thing.

@PanPeter I think you have late term pregnancy back pain and joint pain don't you? Ring your GP and get signed off. Just do it. It's an absolute bloody nightmare in class and your baby and you come first. Don't feel guilty even a tiny bit.

@Meredithgrey1

I can’t help thinking that any teachers who go in and don’t show solidarity with the unions and fellow teachers shouldn’t expect the unions to ever help them again.

Teachers aren’t there to support unions, unions should support their members. I don’t disagree with the union position, or any teacher who follows it. But I also don’t condemn teachers who don’t.

Unions are their members. The clue is in the name. Anyone unprepared to abide by a union directive should in my opinion renounce their membership.

However none of this is relevant to a Section 44. It is not a strike. Teachers sending a letter in will be working in - insert phrase invoked by our politicians- limited and specific ways. They will be paid and shouldn't suffer detriment.

Thank you everyone for your kind words. I just don’t want to lose my job, I love what I do and enjoy being with the children so so much! I worry that if I’m off sick they’ll get rid of me after mat leave. I’m going to speak to them tomorrow and discuss options going forward.

@noblegiraffe

The problem I have with schools is we had next to no teaching at school Mar - Jul

So you think that they should work in an unsafe workplace as punishment?

Everyone has the right to health and safety at work. Even if they did fuck all during lockdown.

That is not what I said and you know it. You have copied one sentence completely out of context.

Of course people should have adequate H&S at work.

I was talking about provision of online working needing to be fair, transparent and equitable to all. It can work as I demonstrated but everyone has to be on board and make as good as possible. We did not have that in the previous lockdown so it needs improvement for it to be considered a viable alternative.

For the record I have already agreed with what
A previous poster advised NEU are asking for:

-Updated risk assessments WRT the new strain.
-Social distancing of 1m between pupils, rather than free mixing in bubbles.
-Mask wearing in class for all students.
-Priority for the vaccine (not above HCPs or the CV).
-until vaccinated, Clinically Extremely Vulnerable staff and women in the third trimester of pregnancy to work from home, supporting students who are at home.

I handed mine in this morning. My head asked me to.

Of course people should have adequate H&S at work.

Cool. The end.

@RuleWithAWoodenFoot

I handed mine in this morning. My head asked me to.

Good for you and good for your head.

I am in Wales and won't be teaching (secondary) with full classes/whole school in until 15th Jan. Key worker children/vulnerable children in Wed-Fri. Staggered start with 2 years groups in Mon/Tues with an extra one every day until full attendance on Friday 15th.
That is the plan. It all depends on staff availability next week.
I really feel for primaries who have been left out to dry.

@Unsure33 Boris has stated that schools are “safe”. How is that exactly?
Primary school pupils to stay 1m from each other?? Really?
Too many people mixing at Christmas. I would prefer my kids home at least for a couple of weeks.

I would prefer my kids home at least for a couple of weeks.

This is my thinking completely. I know things are about to go mental in my school area. Christmas won't have helped. If it starts to calm down in terms of cases etc over the next two weeks, I'm fine to go back into full classes. At the moment I don't think I'm safe (nor is my vulnerable partner), and I don't think that the wider school community is safe either.

@Randomschoolworker19

I'm a TA on 16k a year who lives by themselves. It's alright saying you're legally right and you'll be reimbursed in the end etc but I can't risk or afford losing my pay.

Our Head is doing a zoom call later to discuss with those who have concerns which I interpreted as putting pressure on those who plan to submit a section 44.

Loads of people will complain and be unhapppy but most like myself with just go along with it.

It is not strike action, so can't not be paid. You are saying it is not safe to be at your place of work which is different.

[quote Remmy123]@LacyEdge don't send them then? De register.[/quote]
DO NOT de-register (that old chestnut is getting bloody tiresome!). Your child is entitled to a place in school. Your child is entitled to a place in a SAFE school. The schools are NOT safe. If needs be, claim sickness, tests get lost all the time, that should buy enough time to see how the land lies without the threat of a fine.

@Tryingtokeepgoing

If they do, I hope that all customer facing supermarket and delivery staff do the same...they’re at as least as much, if not more, risk than teachers given that they’re exposed to more people, and there’s no record of who they’ve been exposed to. Perhaps that’d help them see who else is an essential worker!!

I think the difference is supermarket workers do not spend 6 hours a day with other people- no social distancing and no PPE.

I don't think your sister will be alone. Our primary just emailed about 30min ago saying school not opening tomorrow after all as not enough staff to run school safely.

Tier 4, non London school

@BatteredHake

What about the child that died. Underlying condition. But that’s ok from your point of view?