550 contact tracers wake up to no work
A tracer who wanted to remain anonymous was one of those who received this message at 8.15am. It read:
"Ch ch ch changes ....Or...so long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen, goodbye....(just for you Thomas!). Ata marie General
I'd love to be starting the day with...' we have a busy day ahead'. Not today…as you will all be aware, following Government's announcement yesterday, with NZ moving to Omicron Phase 3, our wee world of DC calling has come to an end. We can't thank you enough for your amazing work."
The woman was due to start work at 9am.
“I hadn’t got confirmation yet of a shift. So, I checked by phone kind of to a Facebook post saying your job's gone.”
The shift to Phase Three means people testing positive no longer receive a phone call; instead, they are notified by text message.
They're then expected to notify their contacts themselves.
The post was to an internal group at CBG Health Research, the Ministry of Health’s primary case investigation firm.
A MOH spokesperson said no one has been given a notice of termination.
“The message refers to the long anticipated and foreshadowed move to Phase Three and with it a shift in focus to case management."
The woman worked as a disease contact caller for a year, and the job was her main source of income.
She says the news came out of the blue.
“I spoke to my manager last week who said not to worry, that there’s plenty of work for us."
“Not that long ago we were being asked to recruit more people.”
She understands the need for change, saying "we weren't even keeping up with the amount of calls we had to do versus the amount of people we had".
But what caught her off-guard, was the title of the message.
"I just thought I worked here for a year and to wake up and see that’s how they’re going to title a message basically telling you you’ve lost your job is incredibly unprofessional."
The woman said there was mention of 50 jobs available in case investigation, but that this would still leave 500 people jobless.
“I think it [contact tracing] did have to go but not instantly, overnight, you don’t have a job."
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www.1news.co.nz...
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Live Q&A: Garden maintenance with Crewcut
This Wednesday, we are having another Neighbourly Q&A session. This time with John Bracewell from Crewcut.
John Bracewell, former Black Caps coach turned Franchisee Development Manager and currently the face of Crewcut’s #Movember campaign, knows a thing or two about keeping the grass looking sharp—whether it’s on a cricket pitch or in your backyard!
As a seasoned Crewcut franchisee, John is excited to answer your lawn and gardening questions. After years of perfecting the greens on the field, he's ready to share tips on how to knock your garden out of the park. Let's just say he’s as passionate about lush lawns as he is about a good game of cricket!
John is happy to answer questions about lawn mowing, tree/hedge trimming, tidying your garden, ride on mowing, you name it! He'll be online on Wednesday, 27th of November to answer them all.
Share your question below now ⬇️
Auckland Saxophone Ensemble Christmas concert!
Kia ora koutou,
I'd like to invite everyone to the Auckland Saxophone Ensemble's Christmas concert this Saturday at 7.30pm, where I've been invited to join the group on soprano and alto saxophones.
Join us for a festive evening of enchanting music as the Auckland Saxophone Ensemble celebrates the holiday season with a special Christmas concert!
We'll be playing music by Sergei Prokofiev, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Tomaso Albinoni and more.
Calling all saxophonists! We invite all saxophone players in Auckland, from beginners to experienced musicians, to join our "Saxophone Orchestra" during the second half of the concert. To join, select the "Join the Saxophone Orchestra" ticket and let us know your level and which saxophone you'll be bringing. We'll send you the sheet music a few weeks before the concert - no rehearsal necessary!
See link below for more information!
events.humanitix.com...
Test Your Wits! Today's Riddle Will Keep You Guessing!
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Doing no harm, and feeling no pain.
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