What if carers went on strike

oldMcDonald

marvin, to be fair, HC has already said they got the wrong end of the stick - or did you cross post like I did further up the thread?

marvin

HC wrote: »

I am educated, I assure you. Ignorant in some areas, I grant you.

My remark about chat vs. speech merely raised the comment that the way we speak should not reflect the way we communicate in the written word. Particularly in this kind of forum. The two are so different.

And the points you raise above apply to all employees, don't they?

Oh dear! yes it does but not to Carers, who you may be getting the point by now, are not employed by anyone, receive no wage but can work long hours doing a job most people given a chouice would run a mile from.

I was simply pointing out the difference between care workers and carers as your original post referred to care workers as if they were carers.

I repeat for the hard of understanding care workers are not carers, caring people they may be but carers they are not. The term Carer only relates to people not in a formal employment role to carry out their caring tasks.

As to your other point may I respectfully disagree and leave it at that.

marvin

oldMcDonald wrote: »

marvin, to be fair, HC has already said they got the wrong end of the stick - or did you cross post like I did further up the thread?

Yes I did, I am at work right now and some fool keeps interupting me expecting me to do what I am being paid for! (I get more days off now than I know what to do with I work 16 days a month and get 25 days holiday on top of that! I do however work 4 12 hour days and then get 4 days off so...)

So it can take me a while to write a long post.

By then there was another post in that I can't see till I have submitted my post.

HC_2

marvin wrote: »

Oh dear! yes it does but not to Carers, who you may be getting the point by now, are not employed by anyone, receive no wage but can work long hours doing a job most people given a chouice would run a mile from.

I was simply pointing out the difference between care workers and carers as your original post referred to care workers as if they were carers.

I repeat for the hard of understanding care workers are not carers, caring people they may be but carers they are not. The term Carer only relates to people not in a formal employment role to carry out their caring tasks.

As to your other point may I respectfully disagree and leave it at that.

Please don't be so patronising: 'you may be getting the point by now'. It doesn't do you any good, unless you're wanting a point-scoring contest.

If you're caring for a relative, acquaintance or friend then I bow down to your selflessness. I am perfectly serious; I would be too selfish to do what you have done.

Now, have I apologised enough for mistaking carers for care workers? (My view on care workers has NOT changed! Although see previous post - some are fab.)

Theogirl_2

And another thing

If you have small children and care for them all the time you know how tiring it can be, 24/7 with early starts and up in the night etc.. Tiring but rewarding.

Now caring is also rewarding but for most people there isn't a development of the person. They don't get more independent, in fact as time marches on, depending on their condition or just age related they usually become more dependent. Their condition deteriorates and for some there is a loss of dignity or of cognitive understanding. Either of these can be devastating for the carer to watch a decline and possibly have to deal with it's consequences.

I haven't explained myself well, I hope you know what I mean. I take my hat of to you all who provide care to a loved one and I really hope that you can find some decent respite.

HC_2

marvin wrote: »

Yes I did, I am at work right now and some fool keeps interupting me expecting me to do what I am being paid for! (I get more days off now than I know what to do with I work 16 days a month and get 25 days holiday on top of that! I do however work 4 12 hour days and then get 4 days off so...)

So it can take me a while to write a long post.

By then there was another post in that I can't see till I have submitted my post.

My OH works 4 x 12-shifts and then gets 4 days off, then the same rota again. He has no access to MSE or other Internet sites while he's at work.

Really not sure what your point is here.

MrsE_2

mrs_pepperpot wrote: »

yup thats quite true, striking is the wrong term....... i want to demand respite, i want just one morning a week to go out, look at something lovely, actually go in a shoe shop, have a hair cut, meet up with an old friend with out distractions of smells or damp patches appearing on seats etc, just i could scream, i cant even have a bath till mid night when they are all settled. cross roads are not in my area, carers suppoort say they will access funding for me when oldest son is 18, but i have no family, no support. even now, i know that the time ive spent here i will pay for as i havent helped someone nd he's building for an explosion. thanks for all your comments. i asked for them

Are you SURE you have accessed every avenue of help?
There are charities, help groups, anything you can think of.
Demand help from the SS, they have limited resources, so speak up (or shout) your corner.

You didn't mean any of your harsh words, you're just tired & coping alone. I understand that & I'm sorry if my post sounded judgemental. Who am I to say how you should feel until I've been in your shoes (I did say, I do understand that unlike most children who "need" less as they grow up, when you are caring for children with special needs, they often "need" more as the years go by:grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug:

aurora_borealis_2

Mrs P, you sound knackered!
I'm a carer now, but only to one (not counting OH and children).

I have Crossroads in my area (godsend) so I can get to work 4 days a week. I work at home on the 5th.


Is there nothing for you at all?!
Surely, there must be some level of help?


Where do you live, roughly?

Zenjen_2

I am Disabled and my husband provides pretty much full time care for me.

He is working towards his doctorate therefore is not eligible for carers allowance which is completely ridiculous. On top of this he has to work three jobs to try and pay the bills as for various reasons I do not currently receive benefits.

He gets limited help with respite care from my family, and a small carers bursary from the council to help with costs relating to his doctorate, but it only scratches the surface.

He has looked after me for 8 years now and no help or support other than a quarterly carers meeting which is so badly organized its beyond a joke.

Yes, it would be expensive to pay all carers a decent wage, estimates from different carers agencies vary but you’re almost certainly looking at dozens of billions of pounds….to us frugal money savers that seems a lot but to get it in perspective,

The first 11 days of the Iraq war cost over 90million pounds and the total cost of the war in Iraq- just for the UK is likely to run over a trillion pounds- a campaign which has been a completely pointless, detrimental and illegal occupation of what has been now largely proven to be an unarmed and ineffective foreign power. This war has been hugely expensive in terms of the money to fund it, the cost of treating injured soldiers and of course the human cost which both sides are suffering. This war which has brought no stability to the region or the western occupiers, takes billions out of the public spending each month yet they can't possibly afford a few billion pounds to help our countries unpaid carers???

Lets not forget that if these people were not doing their caring duties, the countries health and social services would completely collapse at the sheer number of extra people needing full time care which if provided by the state would cost far in excess of the relevantly small amount their current carers would need to get a fair wage.

I think it is perfectly reasonable to suggest a 'strike'- in the same manner as doctors or nurses or firemen who will strike whilst still providing essential emergency care so no one is in danger but refusing to do all the 'extras' that are often not even acknowledged by our ungrateful government.

I give it a week of striking, and there’d be a much better deal for carers on the table. Yes their families might suffer in the short term, but everyone would win in the long run, as carers would be less stressed, more satisfied and would feel valued for all the amazing work they do.

Jx

barnabee

And for some it is not a job. We wake up one morning and go from being an ordinary wife and mum to being a carer for the rest of someones life. BAM! Like that. No real choice, no chance to grieve for your old life, just get on with it. Nothing to do with being a no-hoper, a loser, or a vocation - it's just the card you have been dealt.

Spot on - we just strive everyday to give our dying mum the respect, care and dignity she showed us when we were children. We do not look on it as a duty or expect any reward - her smile is thanks enough. We do have help with home carers during the day and they are all wonderful to our mum.
Mrs P - my thoughts are with you and know only too well the anger and frustration that caring brings, Be strong.