Secrets of your trade.

[Confusedfornow]

I have worked in my current area of expertise for the last 20 years or so. It's in Aviation, can't say exactly what or for who as it's a relatively small community (for my role) and it would be VERY outing. Before this, my only other "job" that I did for a few years was dancing (yes, that kind ). So I don't have massive experience of the world of work.

But I was chatting with some people in a bar over the weekend and conversation turned to jobs and then to my role. I was telling them about some stuff which is perfectly normal to me, but was absolutely news to them.

For instance . .

When a plane is "parked" and everything is switched off, the aircraft is referred to as being "Cold and dark".

If a helicopter has engine failure, it won't just fall out of the sky. The pilots are trained in a procedure called "autorotation" and can usually land safely even if the engine isn't running at all.

All British Airways flights use the call sign "Speed Bird". It's unique and no other airline in the world uses it.

Last one . .

Pilots can't wear polarised sunglasses. They make the electronic displays on the flight deck appear black, and you can't read any information from them.

So, what do you know from your jobs that is mundane for you but which most people wouldn't have a clue/be surprised by?

Wouldn't RSPCA fine them or something for this or at least charge them?

This is a really interesting thread.

I can't give out the really interesting secrets as I need to keep my job, but if you're a civil servant supporting your minister in the box (to the left of the speaker's chair on parliament TV) and they call a division, you get locked in so you can't run through a lobby and vote.

Sometimes the vote by goes on for 45 mins - so you need to go to the toilet beforehand!

We call the gentlemen ushers 'the penguins' but never to their faces!

And just seen the reference to Refusal Shoes. It definitely was a thing - tassels on shoes mainly where I worked were seen a possible sign of a refusal of entry.

Wow I've never worked a bar where pints are topped up/drips used (15years now)! Never seen dropped food put back on a plate either!
If you're terribly rude (clicking fingers, saying "I've been here 20mins" not you haven't we aren't blind ) will either get you to the back of the queue or your cocktail may taste a little less like alcohol than usual though.
If you're going to tip, Please don't say "take one yourself" that could mean anything from 20p to an actual drink, either keep the change or give your server a physical tip. If tipping a waitress at the end of a.party, check where your tip is going, managed bars the manager often takes a share --even if they've been hiding in the office for 4hours and are on 5x more money). If you want to tip the chef/kitchen, ask to see them, if it's for your wait staff, tell them that. Kitchen staff dont get a tip, or rarely do (DH is a head chef, the foh staff will boast about tips while he pays for a drink for his team/ puts a £5 in the kitchen kitty, for birthdays/staff drinks/had a shit day need a pint).

Kitchen staff have got half the tips almost everywhere I've worked, so it is with asking. And definitely do ask who gets the tip, sometimes staff don't see it at all, especially common on the % gratuities bills and on card payments.

Yes, agree about the shit tipping system,don't put it in a jar for all, or on a card, your waiter won't see it. The only way you can guarantee they get it is by giving it to them. Frankly it's gross that it's added to bills automatically.

The paying in advance tipping? Well that just smacks of plain ol'fashioned bribery and corruption!

Does it? It was always all above board, and always the customer's idea, it was never suggested, requested or god forbid demanded/threatened as bribery and corruption would suggest. I suppose it is a lot like bribery, but tipping at the end is more so if you think about it. What can I say? It works.

Loved this thread!

The paying in advance tipping? Well that just smacks of plain ol'fashioned bribery and corruption! Yep but it works!! :o

As for "take one for yourself", I would say be selective where you do it. We have a thing at my pub where we all have a pint if offered a drink. It was never formally agreed its just something we all do. Or if you prefer you can take the cash equivalent. And the customers know that, they know us, everyone gets it, no one takes the piss. But I know someone who thinks its fine in her pub to take a £7 G&T because "they offered". Oddly enough, she nevers gets offered a drink anymore and she cant work out why, despite her "take one" costing twice what the customer paid for their own drink!

In my places the tips have always been pooled at the end of the night with all staff except management taking an equal share, including all the kitchen staff. Although I cant remember a chef ever taking their share, they usually give it to the pot washer, as they are usually a 16/17 year old working for the minimum of the minimum wage. That said, these are pub grub places where tips are thin on the ground, you might make a tenner on a really good night. Maybe if there were hundreds being tipped a week it would be different!

@SnugglySnerd i am a mental health nurse of 20 years - your understanding of mental health issues is really poor.

Medication is certainly not a sticking "plaster" ... many mh illnesses are related to brain biochemistry, medication can be crucial in rectifying this .

From working alongside police officers frequently i know that ours carry very snuggly brand new trauma teddy bears in the back of their cars ... these are given to children in situations where the police turn up at their home for a distressing incident, eg domestic violence, to arrest a parent etc etc.

Placemarking

@IfOnlyOurEyesSawSouls have you read all of my posts on this thread or just the one? I’ve given more detail which explains the context of my experiences - some, not all, people ‘fake’ MH issues, or have MH diagnosed with little support beyond medication.

I’m not saying what you’ve implied regarding “sticking plasters”, you’ve taken that out of context.

Pharmacy here.
Handing you a prescription is not black and white, you request it, prescription team write it, doctor signs it, it gets sent to us, we send it to a robot to dispense (selective about who's we send) and then we finally have it for you to give out. If you order your medication the day before don't come in shouting at us the next day because you've run out. Well do our absolute best to get that script but it's a lot of hassle, if you're nice we'll track it down which involves a lot of phonecalls!
Medication going out of stock is a nightmare for us too, if the manufacturer has stopped making it, I can't produce it out of thin air. Behind the scenes were ringing your doctor to find an alternative item!
If you're desperate well do an emergency prescription. If you're nice to us.
We know more about you by the medication you take than you think. We know when you're painkiller addicts and we try to put in interventions to keep you safe but usually the doctor will just keep prescribing it.
If we make an error (rarely) we think about it for days and have to report it to 500 people.
We don't just make your prescription, there's loads of paperwork we are trying to do inbetween and we don't have enough hours to do this. Understaffed and underpaid springs to mind.

I used to work in a tourist shop as a teenager and we would sell things and say they were 'made in Ireland and they wouldnt be. Made in China and bought for about 1p each and sold for £1.99.
We used to give the bus drivers commission for bringing a bus full if tourist in, a%, of what their passengers spent, which was massive money. A bus of 50 people could spend £10,000 or much more. The bus driver would get a load of cash handed to him leaving the shop.
We would work out how much each bus would spend by getting customers to fill in a 'free draw' coupon at the till, these were beautiful tickets that said we had a big draw every 2 weeks and the prizes were great, then we would write the amount the person spent in the ticket secretly just to add up what that bus had spent. There was no draw.
I am always suspicious of 'draws' when anyone is looking for info. I doubt there are many real ones.
I am also suspicious on tours in other countries when the bus driver stops at a shop/restauraunt Because he is probably getting money from the business owner.

This is the best thread I ever read in my life. It has it all. Thank you.

You send scripts to a robot ? How does that work?
You'll only give emergency meds to desperate ppl that are nice despite being and feeling very unwell wow!

Handing you a prescription is not black and white, you request it, prescription team write it, doctor signs it, it gets sent to us, we send it to a robot to dispense (selective about who's we send) and then we finally have it for you to give out.

Doesn’t the doctor sign it before he gives it out? Or do you work in a pharmacy in a hospital?

Scriptsnget written by the team then sent to Dr before signing and getting sent to you. I think that's usual isn't it? It's signed before you get it and take to pharmacy.

@Smotheroffive is right! Oh and the robot is a bizzare thing being rolled out at the moment. A robot picks stock from a huge warehouse (I think) then gets sent to us in plastic bags with your name on. Not sure it's the time saving trick it's meant to be, though.

My GP types the prescription whilst he’s talking to me, prints it out and signs it in front of me. Where’s the team?!

Some doctors do that too, for things like repeats the repeat slip gets sent to the prescription team to write they're usually upstairs in the surgery. Then the doctor gets sent a big pile of prescriptions to check and sign, for example if you have life long medication and don't need to see the doctor every time you get a script.

So pleased this is now a classic. Well done OP!

'My GP types the prescription whilst he’s talking to me, prints it out and signs it in front of me. Where’s the team?!'

So does mine, or they send straight to chemist and it's normally available within an hour.

Or if I take it in to chemist they normally ask if I want to wait 10 mins or so.

Some people don’t clean their butt properly after pooping 💩💩

Crikey 3luckystars that's some dodgy AF place you worked in!

I don't doubt some places do have "draws" that never materialise. But I've worked in several places where it's all done fair and squarely. And one where the winner was fixed I've won a good few too, I think the bigger the company running it the more likely it is to be legitimate. They are all mostly collecting your data it's true.

Also worked in several small tourist destinations and certain none gave coach drivers kick backs - though they were often given a free tea/coffee. The amount who caused chaos turning up without booking