Coronavirus: social, economic and other changes as a result of the pandemic

[Dave2002]

OK - here is a new thread, and here is my starter “for 10”.

Working from home - https://getpocket.com/explore/item/e...king-from-home

Not everyone wants to work from home, though maybe a mix of home and office based working is better.

[Bryn]

Who drives the fork lift truck, stocks the shelves, serves the customers while you're 'working' at home?

Simples: "all automated".

[french frank]

Who drives the fork lift truck, stocks the shelves, serves the customers while you're 'working' at home?

I wonder what proportion of the population has the option of working from home".

[teamsaint]

I wonder what proportion of the population has the option of working from home".

Well lots of GPs seem to be opting for it..........lets hope the Guardian start a campaign about this.

Anyway, Hopefully positive change should actually come out of this crisis. More sensible use of office space , commuting time etc.
In our business, the younger employees seem to be the ones more anxious to return to some days in the office, quite understandably. Parents with young children also.

[Serial_Apologist]

Simples: "all automated".

I thought he was offering an alternative text to Britten/Auden's "Coal Face".

[Cockney Sparrow]

Well lots of GPs seem to be opting for it..........lets hope the Guardian start a campaign about this.

GPs don't seem to be keen on mass Flu vaccination by the sound of the Today programme on R4 this morning. They might become centres of infectivity. When I 'phone my GP practice I've timed 4 minutes of messages to the effect of "DON'T come to the practice..... Use the NHS Website..... Contact NHS Test and Track ...."(BTW)"DON'T come to the practice....."

Probably G4S will get the contract and it will be a tremendous success - eventually.

[Serial_Apologist]

GPs don't seem to be keen on mass Flu vaccination by the sound of the Today programme on R4 this morning. They might become centres of infectivity. When I 'phone my GP practice I've timed 4 minutes of messages to the effect of "DON'T come to the practice..... Use the NHS Website..... Contact NHS Test and Track ...."(BTW)"DON'T come to the practice....."

Probably G4S will get the contract and it will be a tremendous success - eventually.

At one time I would have said, surely, SURELY not??!!!

But today.......... and that just goes to exemplify how utterly the privatised and sub-contracted economy has failed everybody.

[teamsaint]

Reasonably hopeful retail sales figures today, I thought.

https://news.google.com/articles/CAIiEIjnk2QCUtsQo3MU_WgG6m0qFggEKg4IACoGCAowzdp7ML-3CTCtyxU?hl=en-GB&gl=GB&ceid=GB%3Aen

Still very tough out there, where even one or two percent fall in sales can make a big dent in profits.
One of the issues is that retail giants, Amazon and supemarkets, have done really well because of the crisis, whereas smaller more niche outlets have struggled.
Bookshops seem to have had a decent bounce back. Sales look healthy, but again online and especially amazon is the big beneficiary. There is a bigger issue in the heritage market, which is significant for sales, and which is struggling to open its doors and get people back in, especially in London.
International sales for the previously vibrant UK publishing industry are very problematic, but with luck that will correct before too long.
The answer, now that masks are compulsory, is for people to return to and spend in the high st if the really value bricks and mortar retailing. We will miss it if it goes.

[teamsaint]

At one time I would have said, surely, SURELY not??!!!

But today.......... and that just goes to exemplify how utterly the privatised and sub-contracted economy has failed everybody.

Oh , its ok if you have thie Livi app on your smartphone, S-A.

Advert, masquerading as informed comment/ journalism.

https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/remote-gp-appointments-coronavirus-patients-nhs-online-banking-a9620516.html

Brought to you by...

https://www.livi.co.uk/?gclid=Cj0KCQjwjer4BRCZARIsABK4QeXdaBW-c8ubeO4NWoEJ67bXEMlc6MpDcJFuW5f27gxAoX0w72iFe_MaAjP3EALw_wcB&gclid=Cj0KCQjwjer4BRCZARIsABK4QeXdaBW-c8ubeO4NWoEJ67bXEMlc6MpDcJFuW5f27gxAoX0w72iFe_MaAjP3EALw_wcB

[oddoneout]

Reasonably hopeful retail sales figures today, I thought.

https://news.google.com/articles/CAIiEIjnk2QCUtsQo3MU_WgG6m0qFggEKg4IACoGCAowzdp7ML-3CTCtyxU?hl=en-GB&gl=GB&ceid=GB%3Aen

Still very tough out there, where even one or two percent fall in sales can make a big dent in profits.
One of the issues is that retail giants, Amazon and supemarkets, have done really well because of the crisis, whereas smaller more niche outlets have struggled.
Bookshops seem to have had a decent bounce back. Sales look healthy, but again online and especially amazon is the big beneficiary. There is a bigger issue in the heritage market, which is significant for sales, and which is struggling to open its doors and get people back in, especially in London.
International sales for the previously vibrant UK publishing industry are very problematic, but with luck that will correct before too long.
The answer, now that masks are compulsory, is for people to return to and spend in the high st if the really value bricks and mortar retailing. We will miss it if it goes.

Ideally being more discriminating about which shops are patronised? When one of the big chain coffee outlets opened in our town centre a few years ago I was astonished how many folk flocked to buy a cardboard bucket of generic coffee type drink, when within a minute's walk were existing cafes selling coffee and a homemade cake for less than said bucket - and supplying takeaway drinks if required. I could see that for those with buggies and mobility devices the chain was useful as it had safe (precinct away from roads) outdoor seating, but other than that it seemed to be mindless adherence to advertising hype for the most part.
The independents are still there and one has managed to get outdoor seating so now it needs folk to continue to use them, particularly as the number of customers they can serve is now so limited.

[kernelbogey]

There is no significant social component to supermarket shopping, unless you happen to run into an acquaintance. By contrast, traditional shops can develop a social component. This is certinly true of the greengrocer/fruiterer near me in the large village/small town where I live.

So buying my groceries (most but not all) online, as I have done since the beginning of lockdown, is more efficient for me. There is a picture of each product - although a couple of times I've bought the wrong size of jar. But for fruit & veg I'm better off buying from the local shop, 100m from my front door. The nearest supermarket is c7 miles away, so this also saves me that 14-mile round trip. The contribution of the supermarket's transport to pollution should be considered. However, one day's work by truck and driver saves a number (maybe 8-12?) of houslhold from driving there themselves.

[Bryn]

https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/307339?fbclid=IwAR3KajEXxzCprFEr3wR3XDqK2-usNDqVxSJ8qi9-9xS6pfhjdzL5hxY15LQ

[Dave2002]

https://petition.parliament.uk/petit...fhjdzL5hxY15LQ

Signed.

[teamsaint]

Is there a petition to demand the continuing right to see a doctor in person?

[Bryn]

By "doctor", do you intend "general practitioner"? I had no trouble seeing several medical doctors during a recent visit to my nearest A & E deartment as a patient recently. I'm not sure about the situation at my local GP practice.