Topic: Furlough

[goldshirt*9]

So this is the last week of furlough.
Was offered 2 weeks off to help the company, so I took it.
I could get used to this "not going work malarkey"

[6pairsofshoes]

I assume you are doing this without pay?  It's nice to not have someone telling you what to do, but I can't stand not to be busy, so I'm always coming up with something to do.  How are you spending your time?  Are you puttering around the house?  Or catching up on some tv?

[smokester]

I assume you are doing this without pay?  It's nice to not have someone telling you what to do, but I can't stand not to be busy, so I'm always coming up with something to do.  How are you spending your time?  Are you puttering around the house?  Or catching up on some tv?

Originally everyone was getting 80% of their wage but that was only until October. I think it went down to 60% in the second furlough period. It also sounds like the 2 week gesture may be unpaid.

[goldshirt*9]

I assume you are doing this without pay?

It also sounds like the 2 week gesture may be unpaid.

I'm daft, not stupid nor rich, 
I get paid 80% as per law and was asked and agreed to do 2 weeks only, as post December when they ask again, I can state I have done my bit to help a company who struggle to get work.
We are owned by Pcc and who is owned by Warren Buffett (net worth 85.9 billion USD).

[dandrummerman]

We are owned by Pcc and who is owned by Warren Buffett (net worth 85.9 billion USD).

Now if only he could furlough himself,  that'd probably help the company survive a bit easier than 20% of your pay.

I am fortunate enough to not have been furloughed myself at all during the pandemic,  in fact i was just handed a 25$ grocery gift card by my boss for Thanksgiving (he does that yearly anyway).

Perhaps most people know what you do, but i don't.  What kind of work do you do?

[goldshirt*9]

Aerospace / gar turbine engineering .
I am the last person to pass the part as sellable and stamp it off as usable according to the customers requirements / specifications.

[dandrummerman]

Ah that's cool.

I work at a job shop, we do mostly defense manufacturing, but nothing that leaves the ground. Small tank / other land systems components, mostly, with some naval stuff on occasion. We also service a few other industries, such as food processing. Currently making some parts for a supplier of Purina/Nestle.

I program and set up our CNC mills and oversee a few employees who make the parts. 3 and 4 axis work primarily.

Because the DOD labeled defense manufacturing as essential, we never had any time off even when the state shut everything else down for a time months ago. I suppose it was lucky; except there was a time when there was a boost of unemployment federally in which I could have been making just as much for sitting around doing nothing...

[goldshirt*9]

thats cool, American company  PCC Airfoils own us.
Military wise its only Helicopter and plane parts atm. Although American Airforce has given us a 3 year contract
supplying parts for the Harrier as they dont trust the F-35s in desert warfare (something to do with sand  )
Same as your self we were classified as "essential" but in reality PCC wanted us open for sales although power turbine's such as Siemens did need us and thanked us for supplying vanes,

[smokester]

thats cool, American company  PCC Airfoils own us.
Military wise its only Helicopter and plane parts atm. Although American Airforce has given us a 3 year contract
supplying parts for the Harrier as they dont trust the F-35s in desert warfare (something to do with sand  )
Same as your self we were classified as "essential" but in reality PCC wanted us open for sales although power turbine's such as Siemens did need us and thanked us for supplying vanes,

I had to visit a new client today who lives opposite one of the Heathrow runways. D'you know what, I'd almost forgotten what a plane looked like up close and personal.

I really miss air travel.

[goldshirt*9]

I had to visit a new client today who lives opposite one of the Heathrow runways. D'you know what, I'd almost forgotten what a plane looked like up close and personal.

I really miss air travel.

I live under East Midlands airport "stacking" system and the amount of planes we see WAS alot, funny how quick you forget what they look sound like

[6pairsofshoes]

I'm daft, not stupid nor rich, 
I get paid 80% as per law and was asked and agreed to do 2 weeks only, as post December when they ask again, I can state I have done my bit to help a company who struggle to get work.
We are owned by Pcc and who is owned by Warren Buffett (net worth 85.9 billion USD).

The UK must have good labor laws.  In the U.S., it's not at all unheard of for employers to demand that workers go without pay on furloughs, so none of this partial remuneration business applies, as much as it should.  Since the Reagan administration there has been a slow but steady erosion of workers rights and anti union activity among the ruling classes here.  It's really disturbing and the logical end point is the gig economy where little worker bees do everything while some guys who write software just skim the fat off the top.  Voilà:  two economic classes and a sick society. 

[goldshirt*9]

workers have lost some of their rights here also, our main owner being American has tried and failed to impose their labour rights on us. If no work they just make people redundant expecting to re-employ when the work picks up and then suddenly find that the workers have jobs elsewhere. 
We have a certain skill factor you cannot just employ ( basically the workers can run old knackered machines that new people cannot).
We are a old Nation and accordingly our labour laws stem a long way back.

[smokester]

workers have lost some of their rights here also, our main owner being American has tried and failed to impose their labour rights on us. If no work they just make people redundant expecting to re-employ when the work picks up and then suddenly find that the workers have jobs elsewhere. 
We have a certain skill factor you cannot just employ ( basically the workers can run old knackered machines that new people cannot).
We are a old Nation and accordingly our labour laws stem a long way back.

I've always been left bemused at Trump's ability to sack people at will. I wondered if American employment law has such a thing as "unfair dismissal"?

[6pairsofshoes]

They do, but it's nearly impossible to prove it.  In my experience, given any particular situation where facts are challenging to employers, they just make stuff up and lie as easily as they breathe.  It's disgraceful

And, goldie, that's normal, people being laid off and rehired.  But if you are laid off, you are eligible for unemployment insurance here.  It's a pittance, but enough to buy some food, at least.  Organized labor used to be a real force for workers' rights here, but since the 1980's the ruling classes have chipped away at them.  They have employed all kinds of PR to convince the very people they are hurting that they are operating in their best interests.  A very effective political sleight of hand.

[smokester]

They do, but it's nearly impossible to prove it.  In my experience, given any particular situation where facts are challenging to employers, they just make stuff up and lie as easily as they breathe.  It's disgraceful

But in some cases you have certain dismissals as world news. Surely it would be easy to defend if you haven't had the necessary verbal and written warnings beforehand.

The only way you could sack someone instantly and outright here (I think) would be for "gross misconduct". As goldie is a union rep he could clarify that but I'm sure you couldn't sack someone just for doing "a really bad job". You'd have to offer support first to improve their performance.