cant believe work didn't tell me

[rosydreams]

So back in December i got a new co worker ,we got to know each other and she offered me a lift home on her way home.At christmas i gave her a gift to say thank you.

Now come a few weeks ago ,she vanished and i thought darn the job must not be for her .She must of left and whats daft i forgot to ask for her number.

Come to now turns out she got the virus but recovered ,which i was relived but also annoyed with work.When my other half co worker got it his work told him and he got a test.But my work knew i often spent time with her and went home with her and they never told me.I understand confidentiality but they could have at least told me you have been in close contact with someone who had it.My neighbor i talk with occasionally works in a care home.I work directly with customers ,masks of course This really could have gone so very wrong .Why didn't they tell me ,i wish i could furlough i dont feel like i can trust work to tell me if i need to isolate ??????

Work may have thought you were following the rules. Keeping distance - wearing masks... When you share a car - wearing masks, you behind her with the windows open etc...

Its not up to your work to do contact tracing.

@Ffsnosexallowed

Its not up to your work to do contact tracing.

It is if it's a school.

Was your work aware that you car shared? Im surprised they allowed it. My work involves a lot of travel, but weve been told we arent allowed to car share, the company will just take the hit on increased expenses for 2 cars going to the same destination.

Do you not have the Track and Trace app on your phone? You certainly should have if you are car-sharing with someone and also going into a work environment. You have to take some responsibility for your own health and safety here.

We have masks and screens but we work in a small kitchen .Its impossible to effectively social distance.It wouldn't matter if i shared a car when we stand side by side together. There's not enough room to have 3 metres between every person.Work knows this as they have cameras in the kitchen

Why didn't she tell you?

It should have been picked up through test and trace. Work cannot release other peoples medical history to you. Your colleague should have told test and trace you had been in prolonged contact.

as i said i felt stupid i didn't ask for her number ,I didn't expect work to tell me it was her who got sick.Just that i had been in close contact with a person that had it.Several other co workers came in close contact to.My phone is old i cant afford a new one to install the app

Work could have told all employees who might have been at risk that there had been a case and that they might need testing without breaching confidentiality duties. It might be worth checking with other colleagues and possibly approaching HR together to ask why this didn't happen.

none of my other co workers knew either we all know each other its just so odd none of them knew something .Thank goodness i wore a mask on my way home .

Due to privacy laws, companies cannot tell you if a colleague has caught covid. Where my son works in a factory, there have been 3 cases and not one name has been mentioned. They all text each other, so they have found out who the individuals are, as they felt they needed to evaluate their own situations to decide how near they were and whether they needed to isolate.

But they can and should tell people who have had to work in close proximity with the infected person, even if they don't name names.

She should’ve told track and trace.

If your company told you to self isolate then presumably the rest of the kitchen staff would have to isolate too as you have all been in close contact.
Who would then run the kitchen? Would they need to close and deep clean? - this is probably why they didn't tell you

Presumably you only would have known, or needed to know if you were a close contact at the critical point?

@Ffsnosexallowed

Its not up to your work to do contact tracing.

That's just sloppy and you know it

Test and trace would have asked for close contact details at which point they would have contacted you. Depends when symptoms started and when you were in contact her as to whether you needed to isolate

I can't understand this privacy, company not allowed to tell you nonsense. This is a global pandemic of a lethal disease. We aren't talking about an STI !
I work in a front-line role with people who reside in institutions where Covid is rife. In parallel I work every day with members of the public, often in a room all day with 30 others.
When anyone in the fore-mentioned groups tests positive we are told, the Hazmat cleaners come in and spray everything. However when a colleague tests positive nothing is said. They disappear for weeks or months. Managers don't contact who they've worked with, tell us which door knobs or toilet flushes they've touched. Because we wear masks and gloves, they can't have left any residue virus, ergo, we who remain are ok.
Mobile phones and Test and Trace apps are banned at work.