The Coronavirus Panic Thread

[Smapti]

FIrst time in awhile since I've had anything to contribute to this thread, but the 'rona has hit the Store hard this week. We've got about 7 people out right now, which is the most we've had all pandemic - and that doesn't sound like a lot for a store of 170, but 4 of them were cashiers and they were all supposed to be working today. Of course, the people who always complain about not having enough hours never want them when they're offered a chance to pick up a shift, so even though our sales were only average today we had long lines from before I started until just a few hours before I left. I had to spend about 2 hours of my dairy shift checking and one of the other grocery clerks was stuck in the checkstand for over half of his shift, so with the boss' understanding I had to leave the dairy only so-so filled so I could make sure his work got done.

[Arcus]

sigh. My dad was checked into the hospital tonight with COVID. He started showing symptoms on the 26th, but couldn't get an appointment to see a doctor until today. You would think someone with MS could see a doctor sooner, but no. All he could get was a video meeting after an 8 day wait. My mom is sick too, but she is getting over it quickly and the doctor in the hospital just told her to keep doing what she was doing to treat it.


Edit 1/7: My dad is home already. He responded very well to the treatments. They also found he had an UTI that was the cause of his bad fever. His doctor at the hospital was pissed at how long he had to wait just to get told to go to the ER. They said they would have had more options for treatments if they had just told him to go in rather than make him wait for a video conference.

[KuariKaydrith]

Apparently work is going to open on Wednesday, and we're being told not to expect f/t hours. Despite the fact that there are enough appointments booked from Wednesday onwards that we're going to need both f/t reception people. Oh, but salaried management can step in and help...despite them having all their own responsibilities to deal with. And as part of the management team I'm supposed be getting f/t hours when we're not shut down, but that apparently doesn't matter. Ugh.

I've already started looking at applying elsewhere. I was guaranteed certain things when taking on a management role, but heaven forbid that the higher management remember that when it's inconvenient to them.

[csquared]

In the last two weeks, two of my coworkers have caught Covid. Came in via their kids
The Wife's place of employment has at least 6 people out with Covid. One of whom we saw Christmas Eve. We tested negative.

Interesting stats: Half of NYC COVID hospitalized patients were admitted for other reasons. Superspreaders on the loose.

[Nunavut Pants]

I have a friend who has a sister whose family just came down with COVID. Well, not quite all of them. There are 9 of them in the household, and 7 of them came down with it. I'll let you guess how many of them were vaccinated....

If you said "two of them", you win a prize! A fabulous hunk of NOTHING!

[Food Lady]

Did I post in here? My coworker's kids have it. They are home and he works from home. His wife has it too and has been going to work anyway. I don't know how her company is allowing that. He thinks that it's a different thing than a cold or that it's not as serious as it is, or both. I'm not sure. He made a comment in our online meeting. I just know he's totally annoyed that his kids are not in school but he's keeping them home because school policy is forcing him to.

[Dreamstalker]

I'm apparently personally responsible for most of the shortages in the store. The morning orders can be filled generally as requested, but as the day goes on it's harder to even find substitutes. I've taken to stashing a few dozen eggs in my coolers first thing in the morning if later orders need them. SCs are starting to examine my cart and I've caught more than one trying to remove items Either people try to take stuff, or they think I'm stocking the shelves.

I had to pull major OT last week due to the only 3 crosstrained shoppers calling out at once; AM did get SM to approve any OT that I work. We're not sure whether any sick calls are actually Covid-related or if people just see that as an acceptable excuse to not face the public (that I can actually understand--while my department has far less direct SC contact than the rest we do deal with the occasional morons). My store does not require any sort of proof (positive test, exposure, etc) and assumes that self-monitoring/self-reporting is actually going to work. Folks have been coming to work with confirmed Covid--they've told someone!--and not sent home because a manager didn't directly overhear it.

I've been quietly encouraging any customers who complain about the maskless SCs to go to Corporate--I've reminded the store manager numerous times about the town/state mask mandate (FFS there's a giant sign out front that the company made) and been met with a decent amount of indifference...I think they expect us grunts to enforce it. Hell to the no, I'm not trying to confront the crazy.

[csquared]

I don't know how her company is allowing that.

I saw a news article. I'll post a link if I can find it again.
Some hospitals (Los Angles & in Arizona, IIRC) have been so devastated by Omicon that are allowing employees who have tested positive, to return to work if they have no or mild symptoms.

[Food Lady]

It is sad what's happening to businesses. I keep telling myself that society survived the 1918 flu so we can survive this virus. I think it'll just take a bit of sacrifice, just as every other world problem does. I'm thinking of the world wars and other events. I think selflessness goes a looooong way in helping in these situations. It's frustrating but I feel sad and hopeful at the same time. I'd like to be interviewed about this in old age, actually--by a high school student doing a project, when the crisis is long gone and we've come through.

[Ironclad Alibi]

... I keep telling myself that society survived the 1918 flu so we can survive this virus. ...

The thing about that is back in 1918 people were way more reasonable and rational regarding public health. Today, not so much.

[csquared]

The thing about that is back in 1918 people were way more reasonable and rational regarding public health. Today, not so much.

Thank you Social Media.

[Argus]

The thing about that is back in 1918 people were way more reasonable and rational regarding public health.

Except for the ones who weren't.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-M..._San_Francisco

[Arcus]

Sadly, the most deaths from the 1918 pandemic were in the second wave because so many people were tired of wearing masks and staying home if they didn't need to go out

[Monterey Jack]

The thing about that is back in 1918 people were way more reasonable and rational regarding public health. Today, not so much.

Not to mention that the total world population was less than HALF of what it is today. Less people + the difficulties of traveling from one continent to another = disease was harder to spread.

[Arcus]

It still managed to infect 500 million people and kill 17-50 million people, and possibly as high as 100 million (wartime news suppression makes the true numbers hard to calculate.) First known case was on a military base in Kansas and troops from that base carried it to Europe where it was passed to troops from many countries and they carried it home as the war was ending.



'fun' fact: the strain of flu from the 1918 pandemic is still around and is one of those that is common.