Another Tired Kicking For The Sick And Disabled By Rishi

Well said mae13 👏👏👏 For God’s sake bring on the GE!!!

He’s only saying all this as an attempt to get votes from the UKIP / Reform voters who love all the right wing rhetoric. He won’t be in any position to enact it if they lose the GE ( hopefully).

Totally agree. I was so angry and disgusted when I heard this yesterday.

He won't be getting my vote by ruthlessly attacking the sick or disabled.
What next stopping pension payments because people are living too long?
He doesn't live in our world and has no idea of the suffering he will cause nor apparently does he care.
He is an unelected PM and he is overstaying his welcome in my opinion.

One thing I do know for sure. My daughter is a senior teacher and she has so many staff on the sick. One hasn’t been in in over a year and others are always off with “Covid” a “migraine” and other unidentifiable stuff. Sick days are a real problem and so many people are flakes. The impact on the rest of the staff and the children is dreadful. I don’t know if this has anything whatsoever to do with what Rishi said, but it’s high on my agenda.

vegansrock

He’s only saying all this as an attempt to get votes from the UKIP / Reform voters who love all the right wing rhetoric. He won’t be in any position to enact it if they lose the GE ( hopefully).

Oh dear, so they're not decent people in your estimation then. You have no idea how they will vote. I for one won't be, neither will I be voting Labour. In fact I've decided not to vote at all. They're all shysters, corruption on both sides of the House .

So many people are flakes? How many exactly? Remarks like these are what cause people to blame those on the bottom for our social ills.

In our hardworking wider family of around 30 people only one I would consider a 'flake' as you put it. Yes, it makes me angry and I would rather the money went to genuine cases of need, but in any system there will be a few bad apples.

We can live in a society where people are supported by those who may need support themselves sometimes without other people blaming the poor instead of those in power like Sunak whose family are 'earning' more money every day than you can imagine.

It is time we got back to being a country where everyone was valued for the contribution they can make without whipping those at that bottom.

One day your daughter may be sick herself and need that support.

Let's face it, all governments are corrupt - but some are less corrupt than others.

It's a sorry state of affairs when we start to be thankful that ours is the latter

I think it’s absolutely disgusting frankly!

Most GPs will only issue a “fit note” as they are now called for genuine reasons.

To target those with mental health issues and invisible disabilities is appalling.

Bring on the GE

Freya5

vegansrock

He’s only saying all this as an attempt to get votes from the UKIP / Reform voters who love all the right wing rhetoric. He won’t be in any position to enact it if they lose the GE ( hopefully).

Oh dear, so they're not decent people in your estimation then. You have no idea how they will vote. I for one won't be, neither will I be voting Labour. In fact I've decided not to vote at all. They're all shysters, corruption on both sides of the House .

I'm always saddened when I hear of a woman not exercising her right to vote and I don't think I need to provide a history lesson to illustrate my despair.

As for them all being shysters. Have you not been reading the news? The current batch of Tory MPs have behaved appallingly. There is not a week goes by without a sexual assault, misappropriation of funds and/or some other sordid scandal. They have demonstrated an all time low in politics. Last time I checked, the same cannot be said for other parties.

However, not voting is a dereliction of duty to one's country and an easy "cop out" in my opinion.

Nanatoone

One thing I do know for sure. My daughter is a senior teacher and she has so many staff on the sick. One hasn’t been in in over a year and others are always off with “Covid” a “migraine” and other unidentifiable stuff. Sick days are a real problem and so many people are flakes. The impact on the rest of the staff and the children is dreadful. I don’t know if this has anything whatsoever to do with what Rishi said, but it’s high on my agenda.

“On the sick”? It’s a long time since I’ve heard that expression!

If you’ve ever had a bad dose of Covid or a migraine you might understand how debilitating these conditions are, as for some one being off for a year, she’s clearly very unwell. Schools have pretty robust HR processes now and Occ Health.

Teaching is an utter minefield now, especially in Secondary schools, just because your daughter copes and manages aspects of her physical and mental health well doesn’t mean others can.

I do hope she is never in the same position as her colleagues!

Flappergirl, I felt the same as you, when I read the comment about not voting.
Women have fought so hard to get the vote.
If everyone did the same, what a even bigger mess we would be in.

I struggle to get to our polling station, with no parking nearby and at the top of a steep hill.
Consequently, I have arranged to vote permanently by post.

Some sick people are ill as they are waiting for operations, long covid etc.

Some sick employees are paid statutory sick pay and you can't survive on that. There are many people forcing themselves into work and not helping their recovery so having relapses.

Nanatoone, I was off for a year from my teaching job, due to multiple.e comorbidities.
My HT got in THREE supply teachers to cover my job.

I can assure you that the L.A and DWP are very robust in their practices. I had a number of medicals and interviews, because I had eventually run of out of pay. No-one accused me of malingering or being a flake.

The clinicians, who examined me were horrified at the number of hours I was working and agreed my workload had contributed to my failing health.

I had to stop working at 59, no state pension and two young for my teacher's pension.
I certainly wanted to keep working.

Thank goodness, your daughter wasn't one of my colleagues, who were so supportive.

Freya please vote.
Even if you write on the ballot paper ‘none of the above’.
It sends the message that you could be bothered but are disillusioned.

Touched a few nerves today. My daughter goes to work through thick and thin. Last week she was very unwell and went in every day, including to cover for the migraine sufferer (my daughter, like me suffers from migraine) and to cover the six times now Covid sufferer, who works two days a week, but is more often off than in. I do not disparage genuinely sick people but seriously, get off your soap box and recognise how easy it is to avoid work and get paid. The impact on the rest of the staff is appalling. Please try to recognise that not all sickness is genuine.

Nanatoone - teachers arentvflakes, it’s an increasingly stressful job. No offence meant. It management and culture contribute to sickness absence

Freya - I know you’re vote won’t assist mine but please vote

If you decide not to vote, then you have no say in any decisions which are then made. I don't understand why you wouldn't vote, given that women weren't allowed to for so long. Cutting off your nose to spite your face, it seems.
As a (retired) English teacher, when teaching how to write discursive essays, I always said, 'One example does not make an argument.' Where is the research? Sources?
It strikes me that Rishi Sunak is attacking those who can't fight back. As the husband of a billionaire, I doubt he's ever had to worry about being off long term from work. Most, if not all of his off the cuff policy changes/statements show an appalling lack of empathy. They haven't been discussed in parliament either. And the comments about 'half are suffering from anxiety or depression' fails to take into account that this is a secondary reason to a physical ailment.

All Sunak has (ever had) in his derisive political toolbox was culture war. This is just a new (and spiteful) face of that. Thankfully, barring a major disaster, it doesn’t matter what he threatens, as he won’t be in government to enact it.

Nanatoone

Touched a few nerves today. My daughter goes to work through thick and thin. Last week she was very unwell and went in every day, including to cover for the migraine sufferer (my daughter, like me suffers from migraine) and to cover the six times now Covid sufferer, who works two days a week, but is more often off than in. I do not disparage genuinely sick people but seriously, get off your soap box and recognise how easy it is to avoid work and get paid. The impact on the rest of the staff is appalling. Please try to recognise that not all sickness is genuine.

I worked for the DWP for 14 years, about the same amount of time I was a school governor. I can assure you both schools and the DWP HR and sickness policies are extremely robust as well as most schools and all public sector departments having extremely strict sickness policies and processes. The majority of sickness now for both working and non-working people is most definitely genuine and everyone off due to sickness has to attend regular (and in some cases weekly) interviews. It’s possible to be disciplined for being off sick or even dismissed, even where sickness is completely genuine. It’s acceptable under employment law if it can be proven that person is no longer capable of doing their job or has been off sick too many times.

I’ve covered for sick colleagues, without complaint, as they have for me!

One of my colleagues, now a close friend, suffers from migraines which prevent her driving, using a computer screen, in fact doing anything at all aside from sleeping in a darkened room, she’s far from a “ flake”

I find yours and your daughters attitudes utterly lacking in empathy and compassion.

A weak man grasping at straws to bolster his flagging reputation.

Nanatoone, for your information, I too was a member of the management team in an area of high deprivation, so I shall remain on my soapbox, because I have first hand experience at the chalkface and managing staff.
Staff are entitled to their privacy, so others ( your daughter included) may not know the full story.

No-one goes off sick for a year, (resulting in having no income) without good reason.
As I have said, there are robust procedures in place to root out malingerers. I know from experience. I would rather have been at work, than experience those interviews. It was awful.

I initially went to work, despite my consultant advising me to take a week off. The following week, he signed me off work for six weeks.

Marydoll - I too refused the sickness leave advised by my GP, only accepting it when RA meant I couldn’t drive, write etc
A year later I was given early retirement on health grounds. I’d planned to work two more years. It was a grim year and luckily my manager knew me well so no suggestion I was a flake

I wish people would not conflate their own situation with that described. Of course people get sick, my own daughter had long Covid and was in and out for weeks trying to get back. I clearly mean those who do not want to be there, why they are taking up a role they don’t enjoy or wish to do I do not know. I know very well how difficult it is to be a teacher, it’s got harder and harder over time, especially after lockdown as the behaviour has become worse in most schools. However, schools are there to teach our children and grandchildren and need the best and most dedicated people. There are many reasons why it is hard to retain staff and people taking a lot of time off sick are impacting the ones who are in every day. The nett effect is that other teachers fall ill with exhaustion. Please try your best to understand that despite the so-called “robust” procedures, there are people swinging the lead and they are well
known by the rest of the staff. I think the attitude that all those who say they are sick, are actually Ill and not just sick of the job is naive.