Norovirus outbreak

Sandyman · Post by **Sandyman** » 04 Jan 2008, 00:37

This is a big thing on the news today

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/7169347.stm refers, about a very dodgy sickness and diarrhoea bug. The article and news state:

"People struck down by a stomach bug sweeping the UK have been urged not to go back to work.
Doctors estimate more than 100,000 people a week are catching norovirus, which causes diarrhoea and vomiting.
Workers need to remain at home for 48 hours after the symptoms have gone and stay away from surgeries and hospitals, the Royal College of GPs warned."

Now, we are being publically advised by health professionals (not RM line managers who act like they know more than consultants without the relevant training) NOT to attend work if affected by this malaise in order to stop it spreading.

One wonders how this will affect RM's draconian abscence procedure and it's over zealous adjudicators? Will people on stages be given further stages if afflicted by this virus for non-attendance (despite the advice given by those who know), or will they be bullied into attending, thus causing more colleagues to take sick leave, causing further punishments via the absence procedure?

Anyone with the symptoms of this being pushed into working by managers must surely have a H & S AND B & H case if so treated, especially if they incur stages for following government medical advice.

Your thoughts please.

Post by **TrueBlueTerrier** » 04 Jan 2008, 14:17

Cant see RM letting us stay off work 48 hours after the last symptoms, which is the guidance from NHS as it stays active in your system and means you will infect other.

It could be dodgy though 1 postie goes down with it somewhere, and their DOM tells them to come back straight away, they do and infect the whole office. Apparently its so infections everyone would go down with it within 48 hours. Who the hell is going to do the work.

Also if 1 unit gets it bad its bound to spread like wildfire throughout the whole network.

anon · Post by **anon** » 04 Jan 2008, 15:07

TrueBlueTerrier wrote:Cant see RM letting us stay off work 48 hours after the last symptoms, which is the guidance from NHS as it stays active in your system and means you will infect other.

It could be dodgy though 1 postie goes down with it somewhere, and their DOM tells them to come back straight away, they do and infect the whole office. Apparently its so infections everyone would go down with it within 48 hours. Who the hell is going to do the work.

Also if 1 unit gets it bad its bound to spread like wildfire throughout the whole network.

No dom or anyone else will tell me to come back to work untill I am fit and well.
If I had that virus, which sounds nasty, I would probally be off for a couple of days afterwards to ensure I was fit and well.
Come back too early and you may find yourself going off again, triggering another absence and perhaps even a stage warning!

wakkono · Post by **wakkono** » 04 Jan 2008, 18:29

spot on anon the only people that need to watch are those allready on the stage system

doveston · Post by **doveston** » 04 Jan 2008, 20:22

always take the week if you go/want sick imo

DirtyHarry · Post by **DirtyHarry** » 04 Jan 2008, 20:44

doveston wrote:always take the week if you go/want sick imo

Absolutely. One day off sick counts as one absence. One week off sick counts as one absence. We are allowed only two absences due to illness,
before we're subjected to Royal Fail's archaic attendance procedures.

L Tommo · Post by **L Tommo** » 04 Jan 2008, 22:09

When you have your BTW chat,,, No words needed Just to answer the screw , Just let your chunderbox talk for ya... Right over the desk and waddle off to the kharzi dribbling.... JOB DONE.... Well n truely NOROVIRUSED

OUT :lfo :cfo

DGP1 · Post by **DGP1** » 04 Jan 2008, 22:28

L Tommo wrote:When you have your BTW chat,,, No words needed Just to answer the screw , Just let your chunderbox talk for ya... Right over the desk and waddle off to the kharzi dribbling.... JOB DONE.... Well n truely NOROVIRUSED

OUT :lfo :cfo

All you have to do is save it in a bag then just hand it to them.

k979aaa · Post by **k979aaa** » 04 Jan 2008, 22:44

As i understand it you can get this virus more than once if so are managers in royalmail are subject to the very same sickness proceedures as the rest of us and if you are forced to come in then you should all buy your manager a coffee

and thus give him the bug after all he has asked for it by makeing you come in when you are ill. ps i do not mean spit in his coffee let's be clear about it!. cough! cough!

wakkono · Post by **wakkono** » 05 Jan 2008, 17:08

could be interesting this if your dom actually asks you to go home does it still count as an absence
surely 1 load of puke on the delivery floor would make any dom cringe

brothermagrew · Post by **brothermagrew** » 05 Jan 2008, 17:37

Surely if any of the brothers and sisters are unfortunate to catch this virus then if they are in direct communication (face to face) with their DOM then they are going to pass it on to their DOM as well.

Post by **baldrick** » 05 Jan 2008, 18:10

Do Managers ever get sacked for sickness though?

jemima · Post by **jemima** » 05 Jan 2008, 23:40

Perhaps we should be issued with extra PPE such as face masks to minimise the risk of infection? Protection would be especially important for managers since they spend more time indoors....

not me · Post by **not me** » 06 Jan 2008, 06:04

nothing more ironic than getting a BTW from one of our managers with more sick time than anyone!!!

pistol · Post by **pistol** » 07 Jan 2008, 14:46

linkinpark wrote:
wakkono wrote:could be interesting this if your dom actually asks you to go home does it still count as an absence
surely 1 load of puke on the delivery floor would make any dom cringe
Yes thats what i was thinking, if they have sent you home after you turned up for work i dont see how it could count as unauthorised as they authorised the sickness by sending you home. Be interesting for a reps view on this and as RM have set themselves up as doctors by saying when you are ill or not and when you should come in or not, if you spread a sickness like the one going about now would they be liable for sickness passed onto your workmates although this would be very hard to prove i think?

as it happens i can clarify this point a bit..i triggered a stage warning at the end of last year..The acting d.o.m made it quite clear they were keen to issue the stage..however the first of the absences was a case of being sent home by the dom previous to thier appointment the stage couldn't be issued as i was not unauthorised absent on this day..one quick phone call and BINGO!! i walked away a free man..even have this in writing on the letter i got after my meeting.