Dangerous for workers and clients too.
I joined to the company the beginning of January with a promise to give me complex care work /children with oxygen therapy, different types of disability and other complex needs/ but over 1.5 months I had ZERO shift with them. Zero work just promises (next week,maybe next week..)
Last week I went to Cornwall area as a mental health support worker. But the story starts now:
The guy who called H. and said this NHS Trust is his client, so H. sent me
to a wrong hospital which was 50minutes drive away from the correct placement. After he tried to save himself with the second wrong information that finally showed he haven't got a clue what he is doing. So, H. said the client notified us I will need to go into a different ward instead of the original one. He thought that is his runaway from his responsibility but H. didn't care really what he is doing because if he would his job properly he must realize the second ward was in the same hospital just as the first one. So, he just proved he has no clue about the client and he was lazy to check where the staff was sent originally. Not too much requirement to get an address where you should go to work. But for H. it was already too much to do.
After the first hour I found health and safety issue on the ward they asked me to go. Yes, a health and safety issue which was: the staff let the patients to smoke/vape inside the community ares and basically everywhere. That means you cannot avoid to inhaling carcinogenic substances. I obviously raised this concern to the permanent staff there but they said they cannot do anything, so I asked them to let me go to a ward where this is cannot happen. But all the three wards was close the same regarding this issue. So,I texted to my agent who is H. to cancel my shifts because this health and safety issue. Who didn't see my message so I called the one call number to tell this.
K. was who answered the phone and I told her what happened and because H. didn't reacted to my messages so asked her to manage my shift cancellation. She said probably this is short notice, it was 10am Saturday and my following shift was on Monday so roughly around 45-46 hours before the following shift starts.
K. notified H. who finally read messages and I told them tell the truth why I cancelled my shifts. I think almost two days is not a short notice. H. also find it a problem I called the one call number to tell this and messaged to one more person who told me earlier that his is his client too. Sounds like a comedy after H. didn't even know what is his client and the correct hospital address.
So, after I finished my Saturday shift, I went home. On the following day (Sunday) H. said he will notify them regarding the cancellation, the remaining time was 18-19hours to the Monday shift starting. (But a day earlier when I told this to do, K. said ; short notice).
So, today 27.02.2024. I got notification I will not be able to work on the packages that I was promised about 15 times and I was waiting for 1.5months and I just lost money during the wait. The reason because I cancelled my shifts regarding the health and safety issue. Yes, because the health and safety issue. Seems like Nutrix view and value: you must continue to work even if that causes harm and impacts your health on a very serious way! The Nutrix staff must report my concerns immediately to the trust after. I have a dubt about this act.
But today K told me I will not get these packages because I cancelled my shifts.
She said (she thought she found a good example) 'what if a family member of the child / who has complex needs and very vulnerable/ so a family member who smokes in the house'. They said they are worries I will cancel my shifts.
I highlighted immediately if someone smoking around a vulnerable kid who has complex needs that is a health and safety issue too and definitely need to be reported. Because the social services needs to do action without hesitation. But this example shows she has zero knowledge what as a worker must do if a health and safety issues discovered and what the company must do after.
H. who sent me to a wrong hospital not even said a sorry. However he may say sorry after his second mistake too, after he failed again. But obviously very embarrassing to be absolutely clueless about 'your' client. But this shows they has zero knowledge about how to recognise or what to do with a reported health and safety issue. It shows you are not even counted as human ,you need to continue to work does not matter how harmful is that environment and doesn't matter how deeply that impacts your health.
I have no doubt they not just have not get a clue about laws and regulations they wouldn't report harmful or safety issues either because firstly they cannot recognise them as the example shows above.