You know, there was a time when I thought it was all pretentiousness when women would say, good help is so hard to get.But now that I have to have help come in during the week, I am beginning to understand. It is not a ploy for being able to pull some sort of "status symbol" game, so that ppl think you are grander than you are, or rich either. It is truth.I have had some real winners, who eventually were wooed away by more money, and I have had to come out and fire some. Those are they who make one want to tear their hair out by the handfulls.Even so, I always feel awful when have to let someone go. Even those who drive me nuts by standing on one foot and then the other, waiting to be told what to do, when there is a long "honey do" list posted on the fridge.But that's just the simple ones, who want to do a good job and don't quite get it.The ones that make me leave claw marks in the walls are those who cannot remember a simple directive such as, " I am very susceptible to any germ that I come in contact with.Please do not come to work for me if you are ill." I did not think this was difficult to understand, but apparently, I was speaking a foreign language when I said don't come to work! I didn't think it was necessary to stop her at the door and inspect her as to her health, but obviously, I was mistaken. Last Friday, I was very busy writing, and just called out, come in ! when Cherri rang the bell. Yon son was doing mop-up at work, so I went on working until he arrived with breakfast. Cherri...(not her real name) started the dishes, and cleaning the kitchen, and later on, when son arrived with breakfast, we just had our food in the dinning room, so she could mop the kitchen.Once the floor was dry, we moved into the kitchen, and it wasn't until then I noticed that she was hacking and sneezing and blowing her nose.I signed her out at the usual time, and cautioned her, now, if you're not better by Monday, don't come. I don't want your cold...or flu or whatever it is! That should have put me on my guard, but over the week-end things happened, and I was totally distracted again when she came in Monday morning.The point being, she sailed around the house, and kept darting into the bathroom, until I gave her a quizzical look, and she informs me that she still has the "sniffles", and I am thinking O.M.G.! She wasn't scouring out the bathroom as I had supposed, she was purloining my tissues for her nose! That is neither here nor there, the thing that bothered me, was that she intentionally hid from me the fact that she was still sick! By the time my Tuesday through Thursday lady showed up the following day, I had a raging case of the creeping crud and by the next day, Yon son and I both were down with it, and had to call off hosting Sherry for Bible study because she has enough health problems of her own without adding to it for a night with us.I should have called the service to complain by that time, but unfortunately, I was too sick to care.But Thursday when they called to talk to Joey, I couldn't pass up the opportunity to say to Melody, Please tell Cherri, that if she is still sick, not to come on Friday. I am already sick, I don't need any more of her germs.She apologized for Cherri's behavior, and said she would pass the word along. Well, somewhere along the line, the word got dropped, or ignored, and This morning, Cherri comes be-boppin' through the door with a wad of tissues in one hand, still sniffling.So, I stopped her, and asked, point blank, are you still sick? Not really says she, and looks like she's ready to attack my dishes.By now it's just my sinuses draining! So, In the nicest way possible, I said, No, I told you before, don't come to work when your sick.Now, I admire a person who is willing to go ahead and work when they are ill,but when your talking about housework, where you're touching their dishes and cleaning counter-tops and tables,and so forth, you are just spreading your germs around. Take your germs and go home, or to your next client,and come back when you are healthy! I took her time-paperwork and signed her out and though she looked very doubtful, she said alright, and left.I wished her well, and said, I hope you recover by Monday,but if not...! She just nodded, and went out the door. But, I am wondering if she really got the picture, or If I am going to have to go through the same thing Monday. I certainly hope not. She's a persistent little cuss, I'll give her that.But she seems to be the sort that a house has to fall on them before they understand what you are telling them. (Sigh) But it is true. Good help is so hard to find!
OUI?
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