Would you be annoyed/upset at this scenario in the workplace?

Turtle

I wouldn't be thinking the rules have changed, you'll get something when the baby's born. If they sent you something now then you'd get 2 'pay outs' and I can imagine lots of other people wouldn't think that was fair either.

hieveryone

Turtle wrote: »

I wouldn't be thinking the rules have changed, you'll get something when the baby's born. If they sent you something now then you'd get 2 'pay outs' and I can imagine lots of other people wouldn't think that was fair either.

Perhaps making it more complicated, there are 2 different ways of collecting money for gifts etc. The 'fund', or float, is paid into by everyone at the beginning of the year, and covers a card/flowers for illness and the other categories.

A whip-round/collection is then done on each individual occasion i.e. baby/wedding/retiral and the money collected from that is used to buy the gift.

Therefore, I wouldn't be getting two 'pay-outs' as such, as technically I've already paid for my own card and flowers, and when baby is born it would be up to my colleagues whether they contributed to a gift or not.

Clearly at this rate, not :rotfl:

Mojisola

Turtle wrote: »

I wouldn't be thinking the rules have changed, you'll get something when the baby's born. If they sent you something now then you'd get 2 'pay outs' and I can imagine lots of other people wouldn't think that was fair either.

A get-well card isn't going to break the bank!

jackyann

I think that illness around a pregnancy upsets people, who often don't know how to handle it.
Usually these funds are handled by one person and they may have personal feelings about it. The scenario described sadly by Nicki may have arisen because the boss was told, or realised, that Nicki could have been better cared for.

And yes, time to dwell on such things gives them more import.
I just realised that if this is a school, maybe everyone is frantic at the start of the year, and next week someone will say "oh, woops, what about hieveryone?"

My own take on anything like this - don't take offence at the first slip-up (you know the scenario: anybody could have done it, but nobody did, everybody thought somebody had done it)

hieveryone

jackyann wrote: »

I think that illness around a pregnancy upsets people, who often don't know how to handle it.
Usually these funds are handled by one person and they may have personal feelings about it. The scenario described sadly by Nikki may have arisen because someone said that Nikki's loss should have been acknowledged.
And yes, time to dwell on such things gives them more import.
I just realised that if this is a school, maybe everyone is frantic at the start of the year, and next week someone will say "oh, woops, what about OP?"

My own take on anything like this - don't take offence at the first slip-up (you know the scenario: anybody could have done it, but nobody did, everybody thought somebody had done it)

That's the thing - to ensure the money gets collected and properly logged etc, there are 2 members of staff who 'run' it. So this year we have all paid in, so the float will be relatively large to last us the year.

Perhaps it is a bit of busyness and being caught up in things, which is fair enough, but we're always busy :rotfl:

singlestep

There is room in funds like this to accommodate both a get well present and a baby present - over and above this, we usually do gifts from departments/closest colleagues, depending on the size of a school. It's a lot and for those of us who have worked in a place for nearly ten years without an engagement/wedding/baby/big birthday/retiring/leaving it sometimes feels like you do nothing but shell out!

OP, perhaps the fact you've only given thought to it recently is a sign that mentally, anyway, you've turned a corner and are now thinking about work and the usual goings-on?

hieveryone

singlestep wrote: »

There is room in funds like this to accommodate both a get well present and a baby present - over and above this, we usually do gifts from departments/closest colleagues, depending on the size of a school. It's a lot and for those of us who have worked in a place for nearly ten years without an engagement/wedding/baby/big birthday/retiring/leaving it sometimes feels like you do nothing but shell out!

OP, perhaps the fact you've only given thought to it recently is a sign that mentally, anyway, you've turned a corner and are now thinking about work and the usual goings-on?

Ours works slightly differently, but I know what you mean.

I've been thinking about work since I was signed off to be honest, as I am so full of guilt that I am off and leaving others in the 'lurch' as it were. I think my mind only turned to it as I am finally starting to feel a bit better and more 'myself' - up until now I've been quite ill and with a hospital stay too.

Mojisola

Have you got a good friend among the staff who you could talk to who wouldn't make an issue of it to other people?

It could be that a card has been sent but has got lost somewhere in the post.

justme111

No I would not. I would see it as illness while pregnant specially that close to delivery can be seen as part of it and people can see it as if you were on maternity leave already as many take it a month or two before delivery.

singlestep

hieveryone wrote: »

Ours works slightly differently, but I know what you mean.

I've been thinking about work since I was signed off to be honest, as I am so full of guilt that I am off and leaving others in the 'lurch' as it were. I think my mind only turned to it as I am finally starting to feel a bit better and more 'myself' - up until now I've been quite ill and with a hospital stay too.

If you're still ill enough to be signed off by a doctor, then there is no need to feel guilty, especially when you have somebody else to consider who is far more important than any job. You can't do a thing about it so stop! Your colleagues will cope, you'll be covered and it's never going to be easier for them to do so than at this time of year.

I'm being a massive hypocrite here because the first week I was to be signed off, I had such a panic attack that the GP gave me a two-week line instead of a one-week one.

Concentrate on yourself, though. Everything will be there when you're ready to go back.