The Work Thread 2 - Get back to work!

[Green Gecko]

So I was selected for that exhibition in Landan. Pretty big deal as it's a central location and well known venue with some impressive CVs tagging along.

Which naturally leads to being an associate of the Free Painters & Sculptors.

Cool, I can start building up a strong layer of pomp.

Seriously pretty pleased about that though as I've made nil attempt at all to exhibit work for 7 years and gotten very burried into the whole running a commercial business thing. I've working a few times a month to talk through crap with some local services and actually start applying to stuff again so anything happens. I mean, it's pretty normal for me to just avoid applying to any kind of opportunity because forms are absurd things and I'm supper centralised and just do my own thing without prompting (which doesn't necessarily mean making any money).

And two little craft fairs in B'ton to display some handmade signs at before Xmas, so I can do that whole artisanal-but-half-machined-thing-because-econonmics-beyatch. Can't believe how difficult it can be to be "judged" for that sort of thing, (I mean, I'm literally paying to attend) and just saw an announcement from one of the ones in my town for an exhibitor that proudly states they import textiles made up in Turkey. Yeah, totally "local artists and makers", that.

[Gemini73]

One of our nurses (female) on ACUC took a fist to the face last night. Aggressive patient in his 50s with drug addiction that took four of us to hold him down while he was sedated. We thought we had it under control, but the moment we stepped away he jumped up, punched said nurse in the face, caught me with a glancing blow to the back of my head and spat in the face of another porter who lost his cool and, as we wrestled the patient to the ground, my colleague said "Spit in my face again and I'll strawberry floating rip yours off".

Our patient eventually passed out and a security member was placed on watch all night.

None of it was pretty.

The nurse is okay, more frightened than in pain. Going to have a nasty bruise on her jaw no doubt.

So, how was your day at work?

[Gemini73]

Amazing the different attitudes NHS employees have towards us porters.

Tonight I had a doctor/surgeon tell me how invaluable were are, (which I was very grateful for) and an hour or so later some snooty sister on one of the wards tried to blame us for an incident when it was clearly the ward staff at fault.

To some we're invaluable, to others we're just a dogsbody who don't matter.

[Bunni]

I think that’s more of a reflection on the person than on yourselves. The ones who recognise the team effort will praise your efforts. The ones who want a scapegoat will blame those below them.

Not saying you’re below them in anything other than pay banding. It’s how they would view you and your peers. When I worked as a healthcare assistant it was the same. Some folk were lovely and appreciated the fact that they could get on with the meds round as I kept an eye on the falls risk patients and dealt with relatives. Others think lowest band wages and no formal qualifications required to get the job means you know gooseberry fool all and you’re worth gooseberry fool all. Just remember that you are very much essential to the running of these hospitals and those who don’t feel the same would be ruined without your services.

[Dig Dug]

The MS Office Licence I got back is uni is due to expire on Tuesday.
What do?

[Green Gecko]

When did you last make a microsoft document?

[DarkRula]

If you only need to do basic stuff, the free online apps are more than good enough, and I'm pretty sure you can run an unlicenced official version of the latest Office 365 package which offers the same amount of functionality.

[Gemini73]

I think that’s more of a reflection on the person than on yourselves. The ones who recognise the team effort will praise your efforts. The ones who want a scapegoat will blame those below them.

Not saying you’re below them in anything other than pay banding. It’s how they would view you and your peers. When I worked as a healthcare assistant it was the same. Some folk were lovely and appreciated the fact that they could get on with the meds round as I kept an eye on the falls risk patients and dealt with relatives. Others think lowest band wages and no formal qualifications required to get the job means you know gooseberry fool all and you’re worth gooseberry fool all. Just remember that you are very much essential to the running of these hospitals and those who don’t feel the same would be ruined without your services.

Thanks. I appreciate that.

Between being punched in the head by patients and senior staff treating me like shite I still love my job. Very much so.

[justlexi]

Putting up a business is really hard, why is it so hard to build credibility nowadays.

[Moggy]

Work have just announced that there are changes to the Bradford score system!

Now if you go into "amber" (a score of 50) even once during the year, you will no longer be eligible for a bonus or R&R awards for a year.

If you go into "red" (a score of 100) even once during the year, you will not be eligible for a pay rise the following April.

And if you are in "amber" you have to attend a disciplinary meeting for a verbal warning, going into "red" would turn that into a written warning.

Lovely. I look forward to catching everyone else's diseases as people force themselves into work and pass their sicknesses around.

[Jenuall]

Surely directly linking sickness with pay and performance is illegal? If not it strawberry floating should be.

[Errkal]

Bradford scores
It’s the future of making people perform better.

[Lotus]

Baffling that in 2019 that kind of policy is in place.

[Dig Dug]

When did you last make a microsoft document?

Not sure what you mean by that. I use word on the regular so I'd like to keep using it.

[Moggy]

Surely directly linking sickness with pay and performance is illegal? If not it strawberry floating should be.

Unfortunately I don't think it is illegal.

Baffling that in 2019 that kind of policy is in place.

It’s a horrible policy. Even worse is that we only became aware of it because somebody was out sick, came back and was then told they had gone into the red and that the rules had now changed. She had no idea (none of us did!) and so now will not get a pay rise next year.

They will succeed in reducing the number of sick days, but they will only increase the numbers of people sick.

[Rocsteady]

I'd leave the company if that got implemented at mine. Was hospitalised for a couple of weeks at the start of the year, if that meant not getting a pay rise the following year that could strawberry float right off.

[pjbetman]

Surely directly linking sickness with pay and performance is illegal? If not it strawberry floating should be.

Unfortunately I don't think it is illegal.

Baffling that in 2019 that kind of policy is in place.

It’s a horrible policy. Even worse is that we only became aware of it because somebody was out sick, came back and was then told they had gone into the red and that the rules had now changed. She had no idea (none of us did!) and so now will not get a pay rise next year.

They will succeed in reducing the number of sick days, but they will only increase the numbers of people sick.

Surely those changes must be brought forward into a contract change? She should get her union involved or present a grievance.

[Moggy]

Surely directly linking sickness with pay and performance is illegal? If not it strawberry floating should be.

Unfortunately I don't think it is illegal.

Baffling that in 2019 that kind of policy is in place.

It’s a horrible policy. Even worse is that we only became aware of it because somebody was out sick, came back and was then told they had gone into the red and that the rules had now changed. She had no idea (none of us did!) and so now will not get a pay rise next year.

They will succeed in reducing the number of sick days, but they will only increase the numbers of people sick.

Surely those changes must be brought forward into a contract change? She should get her union involved or present a grievance.

Our contracts don’t specify things like that.

[Jenuall]

Surely directly linking sickness with pay and performance is illegal? If not it strawberry floating should be.

Unfortunately I don't think it is illegal.

Baffling that in 2019 that kind of policy is in place.

It’s a horrible policy. Even worse is that we only became aware of it because somebody was out sick, came back and was then told they had gone into the red and that the rules had now changed. She had no idea (none of us did!) and so now will not get a pay rise next year.

They will succeed in reducing the number of sick days, but they will only increase the numbers of people sick.

Surely those changes must be brought forward into a contract change? She should get her union involved or present a grievance.

Yeah all seems shady as strawberry float to me.

[Cuttooth]

Organise your workforce, Moggy.