Crew rehiring/vaccination progress around the world

[ace2542]

10 minutes ago, Ocean Boy said:

So we won't be sharing a drink in the Diamond Lounge any time soon?

I can always sneak in for one. But if our 26 night package goes off without a hitch I will as they say eat my hat. We have till August to when the agent wants final payment.

[Sunshine3601]

1 hour ago, ace2542 said:

We have extended the so called furlough scheme into April 2021. And people who are unemployed get assistance with housing benefits and are on universal credit formerly known as jobseekers allowance and unlike USA your unemployment does not stop after 99 weeks like the song money's too tight to mention cant get an unemployment extension. There are people who have been unemployment for 25 years that I know and people who go so far as to have children to get government housing and benefits. But without those benefits those people would simply be homeless as they don't want to work.

Here in  the US we have many different public assistance programs, biggest one is called welfare where they get section 8 housing and food stamps.  Yes, many people do the same and have more children so they can get more funds every month.    I think our standard unemployment benefits last 90 days but there have been several extensions during covid.  Plus supplemental pay of $300 to $600 per week.

The bulk of our homeless people choose that life.  Most of them refuse help.

[Sunshine3601]

1 hour ago, ace2542 said:

. I don't know how it works in America but if you are unemployed and turn down a job without a very good cause   in UK your money gets stopped I think for 3 years.

Pre covid people collecting unemployment in the Us had to document that they applied for at least 3 to 5 jobs per week and if the state discovered they were offered a job and turned it down then their unemployment benefits were stopped.  

[smokeybandit]

9 minutes ago, Sunshine3601 said:

Here in  the US we have many different public assistance programs, biggest one is called welfare where they get section 8 housing and food stamps.  Yes, many people do the same and have more children so they can get more funds every month.    I think our standard unemployment benefits last 90 days but there have been several extensions during covid.  Plus supplemental pay of $300 to $600 per week.

The bulk of our homeless people choose that life.  Most of them refuse help.

 

Welfare of course was only designed to be a short term program while you got back on track. Of course some make that their way of life. Even others have found ways to game the system to actually make being unemployed quite profitable.

[Sunshine3601]

I personally know a guy that has been homeless for 25+ years because he wants to be.  I went to high school with him.  His family owns a couple businesses in the area and lives in a very large estate.  

In his early 20s he decided he didnt want anything to do with family businesses and walked out and has lived on the streets since then.

He hitches rides across america but always returns to my area in the summer.  

Last I saw him walking down the street he looks alot older and very dingy but his choice.

His parents set up a trust fund for him but rumor is that he wont take their money.

 

[Sunshine3601]

5 minutes ago, smokeybandit said:

 

Welfare of course was only designed to be a short term program while you got back on track. Of course some make that their way of life. Even others have found ways to game the system to actually make being unemployed quite profitable.

Yes, there are far too many people that take advantage of the system and not enough people to check and stop that from happening.

[vacationlover_mn]

10 hours ago, Sunshine3601 said:

 

I think we are going to see a big change in commercial real estate as alot of businesses are discovering staff can successfully work from home and wont need to pay large overhead for large office builders.

 

Completely agree, and I think it will happen globally...  my coworkers in Mumbai are loving having no commute, and are insanely productive right now.  With less hours wasted on the train, they can start later, work later, and have more overlapping time with us US folks.  I can’t see us going back to the old way, for those of us who can do 99% of our job from home. I am pretty sure that in the future, at my large global company, we will only need to go into the office for specific types of meetings or training.

[smokeybandit]

10 hours ago, Sunshine3601 said:

think we are going to see a big change in commercial real estate as alot of businesses are discovering staff can successfully work from home and wont need to pay large overhead for large office builders.

A lot of companies have wanted to go this route for some time, but couldn't justify taking that leap on their own accord.  Now they had their justification to do it, and have proven to themselves that people are just as productive (if not more so because people who WFH tend to work longer hours) at home.

As someone who was a full time teleworker prior to covid, this is great news for me as it widens any future job opportunities for me.

[ace2542]

3 minutes ago, Sunshine3601 said:

I personally know a guy that has been homeless for 25+ years because he wants to be.  I went to high school with him.  His family owns a couple businesses in the area and lives in a very large estate.  

In his early 20s he decided he didnt want anything to do with family businesses and walked out and has lived on the streets since then.

He hitches rides across america but always returns to my area in the summer.  

Last I saw him walking down the street he looks alot older and very dingy but his choice.

His parents set up a trust fund for him but rumor is that he wont take their money.

 

If he doesn't want his trust fund tell his parents they can adopt me and I will take it! 🤣

 

I have heard the urban legend about the freight train hobos all being secretly rich but I am sure that is just a legend. And I remember that guy on unsolved mysteries with Dennis Farina a business guy in LA worked with the homeless community and become too obsessed with it maybe and just went into that world and he is gone.

 

On the other side of that coin he could have taken his parents trust fund money and lived on a cruise ship instead and travelled the world. Super Mario as they call him is not the only who lives on a cruise ship you know.

[Sunshine3601]

2 minutes ago, smokeybandit said:

A lot of companies have wanted to go this route for some time, but couldn't justify taking that leap on their own accord.  Now they had their justification to do it, and have proven to themselves that people are just as productive (if not more so because people who WFH tend to work longer hours) at home.

As someone who was a full time teleworker prior to covid, this is great news for me as it widens any future job opportunities for me.

For several years now both of us are able to work wherever we are as long as we have internet and cell phone.   This how we can travel and cruise as much as we do.  I work on every cruise.   When home I elect to go to office as I like human interaction in person with fellow workers.  I have been going in office almost every day since march but now working from home as a couple people tested positive last week.  

There is pros and cons to it.   I hate zoom meetings.  Uggghhh

 

[vacationlover_mn]

3 minutes ago, Sunshine3601 said:

 

There is pros and cons to it.   I hate zoom meetings.  Uggghhh

 

I don’t mind zoom meetings, but HATE zoom happy hours.  After the last one, where no one drank and there were too many awkward silences, I decided I’m not doing them anymore- they are just boring and dumb.

[Ocean Boy]

2 minutes ago, Sunshine3601 said:

For several years now both of us are able to work wherever we are as long as we have internet and cell phone.   This how we can travel and cruise as much as we do.  I work on every cruise.   When home I elect to go to office as I like human interaction in person with fellow workers.  I have been going in office almost every day since march but now working from home as a couple people tested positive last week.  

There is pros and cons to it.   I hate zoom meetings.  Uggghhh

 

However, they have revolutionized continuing medical education. I can now attend a conference from the comfort of my den without the expense of closing the office, inconveniencing patients, and paying for flights and hotels. It is so much easier now to try to stay on top medical info.

[Ocean Boy]

2 minutes ago, vacationlover_mn said:

I don’t mind zoom meetings, but HATE zoom happy hours.  After the last one, where no one drank and there were too many awkward silences, I decided I’m not doing them anymore- they are just boring and dumb.

Never heard of that before.

[Ourusualbeach]

7 minutes ago, vacationlover_mn said:

I don’t mind zoom meetings, but HATE zoom happy hours.  After the last one, where no one drank and there were too many awkward silences, I decided I’m not doing them anymore- they are just boring and dumb.

Totally agree.  One and done for me. 

[Sunshine3601]

51 minutes ago, vacationlover_mn said:

I don’t mind zoom meetings, but HATE zoom happy hours.  After the last one, where no one drank and there were too many awkward silences, I decided I’m not doing them anymore- they are just boring and dumb.

My office does zoom happy hour with trivia games every friday.  I tried a couple but gave up.

[vacationlover_mn]

Just now, Sunshine3601 said:

My office does zoom happy hour with trivia games every friday.  I tried a couple but gave up.

UGH!  Every Friday??!!!  My work has done 3 (maybe 4) since March.  All of them sucked.  I actually don't even like the couple virtual happy hours I had with my friends.  It's just not the same as real life.  And, I find it so odd that NO ONE FRICKING DRINKS AT THEM!??  I mean... PEOPLE!  We don't have to drive!  Drink up!  When we HH in real life, people drink.  So weird.

[Sunshine3601]

51 minutes ago, Ocean Boy said:

However, they have revolutionized continuing medical education. I can now attend a conference from the comfort of my den without the expense of closing the office, inconveniencing patients, and paying for flights and hotels. It is so much easier now to try to stay on top medical info.

Yes, I agree.  This fall I had to do online continued education classes to renew my license.  I would bring home work laptop and do in evenings or mornings before work.   Although some of the videos were just plain stupid, I enjoyed the convenience.

[Sunshine3601]

1 hour ago, ace2542 said:

If he doesn't want his trust fund tell his parents they can adopt me and I will take it! 🤣

 

I have heard the urban legend about the freight train hobos all being secretly rich but I am sure that is just a legend. And I remember that guy on unsolved mysteries with Dennis Farina a business guy in LA worked with the homeless community and become too obsessed with it maybe and just went into that world and he is gone.

 

On the other side of that coin he could have taken his parents trust fund money and lived on a cruise ship instead and travelled the world. Super Mario as they call him is not the only who lives on a cruise ship you know.

So I guess we can agree there is not much difference on how the US and UK are handling those living at poverty levels as well as those suffering from job loss.   

We must remember that media will only give partial info and alot of times wrong info.

[Sunshine3601]

6 minutes ago, vacationlover_mn said:

UGH!  Every Friday??!!!  My work has done 3 (maybe 4) since March.  All of them sucked.  I actually don't even like the couple virtual happy hours I had with my friends.  It's just not the same as real life.  And, I find it so odd that NO ONE FRICKING DRINKS AT THEM!??  I mean... PEOPLE!  We don't have to drive!  Drink up!  When we HH in real life, people drink.  So weird.

Yup every Friday at 4:30   oh just about everyone was drinking on our zooms.   They started them last spring and are still doing them.   I get asked how come I dont participate.  I made up excuses then finally said I dont like it!!

[gatour]

I worked for a large international banking company about 13 years ago they implemented a work from home program, in which a majority of our division took advantage of.  Mind you, the team I was on was spread all over the US.  Most of the people I interacted with were not local to my location.  As long as I had internet connection and a phone, I could work from anywhere.   About 4 years  ago there was a change in senior leadership and the new senior was old school and wanted everyone back in the various hubs.  Back we went.  Based on a conversation I had with a now former co-worker, when covid hit and various municipalities ordered everyone to stay hope, there was capacity issues.  Most likely because they ripped out a lot of the infrastructure supporting remote working.

 

We used Webex for meeting.  It is cisco's version of Zoom.  The only time we used the video portion when a Powerpoint deck was being presented, but that was the only thing seen.  We just didn't feel the need to see each other faces.

 

I agree that work from home will still be around after covid.  Not every company will continue with it but many will.

[smokeybandit]

2 hours ago, Sunshine3601 said:

My office does zoom happy hour with trivia games every friday.  I tried a couple but gave up.

That'd be awful.  I certainly enjoy a company happy hour, but over zoom?  No thanks

[John&LaLa]

15 hours ago, Ocean Boy said:

So we won't be sharing a drink in the Diamond Lounge any time soon?

 

Will anybody?

[John&LaLa]

14 hours ago, Ocean Boy said:

However, they have revolutionized continuing medical education. I can now attend a conference from the comfort of my den without the expense of closing the office, inconveniencing patients, and paying for flights and hotels. It is so much easier now to try to stay on top medical info.

 

You need to look into tele med. 👌 

[Missusdubbya]

14 hours ago, vacationlover_mn said:

I don’t mind zoom meetings, but HATE zoom happy hours.  After the last one, where no one drank and there were too many awkward silences, I decided I’m not doing them anymore- they are just boring and dumb.

I agree so awkward!

[Ocean Boy]

8 hours ago, John&LaLa said:

 

You need to look into tele med. 👌 

Back in my days in medical school we were taught that making a diagnosis included actually placing your hand on your patients. It still works. Not everyone needs to be irradiated with a CT scan.