unfortunate chain of events

petals

So, boyfriends Dad is released from hospital last week after a nasty fall. Unfortunately he came home with a nasty dose of diarrhoea. The next day we had a call to say can we come over as he's in 'a bit of a mess'. Poor guy is 80yrs old and can hardly walk.

So we arrive armed with all manner or equipment, ie rubber gloves, disinfectant, mops, buckets bleach etc. Three hours later we have finished cleaning just about everywhere, including his bed, his carpet, shower, toilet, all his laundry and bedding. Phew, thank god that's over!! Not quite :x

Next day, went to work as normal, finished a late shift at 9pm and felt not too great so went straight to bed. A couple of hours later it hit (big time). Spent most of the night sitting on loo with head in sink. Every venture back to bed was the same, just get settled and then having to dash back to bathroom for another go.

Anyhow, three days later, finally limp into Dr's surgery feeling like death. He told me to leave off with the Mtx, and ordered full blood counts. Gave me something for settling tum and told to keep drinking and to stay away from work for 1 week (at least).

So, now will be in for another warning regarding absence from work, plus not had my meds for 2 weeks so not too sure how to restart them, ie do you go back on full dose or build up again (i take 8 tabs once a week)

I feel very weak and tired now as missed 4 days food, each time I tried to eat it just came straight back so had only water for 4 days.

I feel pretty angry with the hospital that sent FIL home in that state, and pretty angry with myself for getting infected this way. I couldn't leave him as he was but I now wish somebody else had done the deed. My boyfriend was in a similar state as myself and thank god we live in seperate houses or we would have been fighting over the bathroom.

I am now feeling much better and can eat almost normally, however I dread going back into work on Wednesday and having the dreaded welcome back meeting. I will be in for another warning (or worse) for sure.

Thanks for reading, had to get that off my chest.

Petals x

valval

bet the hospital could not get rid of him quick enough to save them the hassle glad you are all over the worst it awfull that butterfly feeling before going back to work but if you had gone in with that they would all have got it perhaps you should have had meating straight away so they could share it shame for them not to understand how bad it makes you lol will be in your pocket wed to give you some suport will have syrup of figs to put in there drink :oops: val

petals

Ha Ha thanks Val,

Yes syrup of figs in their drinks, that would be amusing to watch. I told my GP that I would be in trouble at work and he said he would be my advocat if any trouble. He said the law would not let me back into work in a supermarket with such an illness untill it was completely gone, ie 48 hrs with no symtoms.

Thinking I will need the use of my trustee union rep (again) and glad to know you will be in my pocket.

Thanks Petals x

Colin1

Sounds awful. You really should complaine to the hospital for sending him home in that condition . its just not on
Colin

Emily

petals wrote:

Ha Ha thanks Val,

Yes syrup of figs in their drinks, that would be amusing to watch. I told my GP that I would be in trouble at work and he said he would be my advocat if any trouble. He said the law would not let me back into work in a supermarket with such an illness untill it was completely gone, ie 48 hrs with no symtoms.

Thinking I will need the use of my trustee union rep (again) and glad to know you will be in my pocket.

Thanks Petals x

Now how did I know it was a supermarket that is your employer. They just treat staff like robots. I work for a large retailer that has a food are as well. They will not make adjustment for staff ie like purchasing equipment that A2W recommended. I wounder why....anyone got ideas please :x Has your union been of help to you, hope so....

petals

Hi Emily,

My union rep actually made an error during my last welcome back meeting. She advised me to accept the verbal warning for poor attendance related to ill health even though it was RA related. I have since armed her with information in the way of booklets which I picked up at my last rheumy appt. concerning working matters for employees and emloyers which states that RA is covered by the DDA and I should not have been warned.

Hopefully I will get that warning overturned and I feel that not all grass roots union reps are quite up to speed on the rules regarding disability protection for workers.

I am not sure how this latest meeting will go tho as my latest absence was not RA related.

Have a read of one of my other posts on the working matters forum entitled 'my day from hell' I feel i may be in for 'my day from hell 2'

Will keep you posted

Petals x

barbara12

Hi petals
This is awful , I hope you put in a complaint to the hospital, its disgraceful to send him home like that, your poor fil must have felt so bad having to ask for help with being cleaned up.
Whatever is the nhs coming to, and then poor you picking up the bug, the effect it is having on your health and work, please get it down in writing, and get off that complaint.
I do hope you feel better very soon.

tkachev

How awful for you. But work should be grateful as you would be spreading it around as it sounds highly contagious.

I hope it is all over now.

Best wishes
Elizabeth x

Emily

petals wrote:

Hi Emily,

My union rep actually made an error during my last welcome back meeting. She advised me to accept the verbal warning for poor attendance related to ill health even though it was RA related. I have since armed her with information in the way of booklets which I picked up at my last rheumy appt. concerning working matters for employees and emloyers which states that RA is covered by the DDA and I should not have been warned.

Hopefully I will get that warning overturned and I feel that not all grass roots union reps are quite up to speed on the rules regarding disability protection for workers.

I am not sure how this latest meeting will go tho as my latest absence was not RA related.


Have a read of one of my other posts on the working matters forum entitled 'my day from hell' I feel i may be in for 'my day from hell 2'

Will keep you posted

Petals x

Petals

Your disability now comes under now Equality Act 2010.

Also, did your supermarket ever have managers going around and pick on employees and ask them to turn out their pockets and take off their shoes to see if they have stolen anything or have unauthorized things on them like their mobile phones etc.

My store did that frequently until 2009, they have stopped it. I told them that I thought it was illegal and that they should not doing that and they never done it since then.

petals

Yes Emily,

we get staff surched regularly. Because my dept is right next to staff reception (where they do the 'searches') i was once searched six times in one week, that was because I was the most handy person to 'grab'.

I had my locker searched too just before i went off sick. If you have any personal items such as tampax or deoderent in your locker then they ask to see a receipt. They even queried my prescription drugs which I need to keep a ready supply of.

Occasionally they also do car searches but I have never had one of those (yet)

Petals x

Emily

Since I told manager a couple of years ago that it was illegal to do these searches it seems to have stopped it since then. I did not mind being asked by some manager to turn out your pocket and take off your shoes, but when it was done with a manager that had bullying me and also a male members of staff was there at the time, that was when I told them that it was illegal and it never happened anymore to all the staff in store. I wrote the union about it but got no reply back. A night time shift staff that was contacted out and later became employed by store told me when she was on night work the manager came around and asked them to pull up their jumper to see if they had on any extra bars. How disgusting is that. :x :x

I am surprised that your union has not done anything about this as asking staff to turn out their pocket is illegal unless the company has evidence that you have actually stolen something from their store on your person. :oops:

They are allowed to search staff lockers, not sure about cars the cars in their car parks.

Manager just love that part of the jobs wounder are they training to beleive all staff are liers and cheats and this begs the question why do they emply staff with a view like this of them

Emily

One more thing, when you do your RTW interviews, are you made signed there and then, managers will only put on the notes what they want on them and your remarks are not put down.

I also note from getting the notes that was taken when I put in grievances they were totally different to what we discussed and that was when I had union member then with me. I was shocked when I read them back it was always to the manager advantage. Manager are the cheats, so be careful read the take notes, I am not sure if you supermarket is like the one I am in, does your manager force you to signed the notes that they take at meetings. If so, make sure you get a copy of it that day and read over it and if you see things that are not correct write back immediately to them correcting it. This is even if you have read them you are allowed to make correction to them within a couple of days of them being taken.

If manager do not let you have a copy of the notes for weeks or no copy at all of the meeting then be assure they are not in your favour (they will actually lie in writing). It does not matter if a union member is with you they will lie anyway so it is always better to get copies of these meeting of the notes that the managers taken. :x :x :x

petals

Thank you very much Emily,

Yes I am asked to sign notes then and there and I have also noticed that they leave things out that I have said, which occasionally changes the meaning of what was actually discussed.

I have a funny feeling we work for the same company. Yes they are sneaky.

Petals x

Emily

petals wrote:

Thank you very much Emily,

Yes I am asked to sign notes then and there and I have also noticed that they leave things out that I have said, which occasionally changes the meaning of what was actually discussed.

I have a funny feeling we work for the same company. Yes they are sneaky.

Petals x

Well they have actually lie in the notes to me and would not let me have them until weeks later and it was too late to do anything about it.
You mentioned the name of your supermaket but I worked for a large retailer with food hall.

Manager will not let you leave the meeting until you sign their notes and when you do that you are stuffed.

It looks like all the big supermarkets and retailers do the same think and get away with it becasue they are so big and get away with it with impunity.

Let me know what your union say about searches. :x :x

Let me know how you get on with your union is it USDAW or is GMB