Im so sorry youre in this position, OP. Everyones Crying Over Adams Poem From Season 3 Of Sex Education The UK is having a heck of a lot of problems, and every so often we wonder if wed need to head back Stateside, but active shooter drills keep it crossed off the list. Your email address is only used to send you NTRW updates. They cant ask to leave them alone at home nor do theywant their party blessed by the presence of these little party wreckers. 1) Get enough sleep the night before. And leaving them alone would be a big question mark to the whole face of humanity. CLICK HERE to get your copy from Book Depository. You are sick. Sick of this a-hole you work for! First thought was to call in sick. Often the service of someone so discharged will be characterized as general under honorable conditions or under other than honorable conditions. But I like this teachers perspective that it helps her to ensure her class is ready to allow her to concentrate on the best response to an actual emergency; so I assume emergency responders have the same belief. Ive heard a couple of guys who have played too many FPS games talk about how theyd save the day. You should probably go ahead and [Insert Activity] without me. They were rushed out of the pool without their towels (not time, not with lives at stake) and had to hide in an unheated locker room for 2+ hours afterwards. I cannot begin to explain how much I am dreading this training. Yeah, hes insensitive and unempathetic. I would go with calling in sick the day of the drill. Hey Ive gotta drive to [Insert Town/College Name] to pick up [Insert Your Siblings Name] [Insert the Party Date]. Many of us work in professions where we are obliged to work on the weekend, and there are some benefits to weekend work such as higher pay, and more freedom from your boss. During the week, you were full of hope and motivationfor the weekend ahead. In a real event, it takes a long time for law enforcement to secure each room. Its a big box store, just a series of giant open rooms! Even worse was what they advocated we teach kids they expected that we would teach 5-year-olds to run in a zigzag pattern across the playground and show them a safe location to run to (like the next school down the street), or discuss the possibility of an active shooter with them every fall. Are you getting a lot of spam which is very annoying and want to avoid them? Just flat out no. And as others have pointed out, experts question whether they drills really help anyone anyway. BUT I also think theres a major difference between walking through lets all identify the doors wed need to lock and the spaces wed want to hide in [our offices / work spaces we frequent / etc. This has led to a lot of frustration among soldiers, especially those who were looking forward to the opportunity to train and bond with their unit mates. Pretty sure I called in sick that day. The OG excuse. ****WARNING FOR SENTENCES BELOW*****. In the United States, the First Amendment of the Constitution (namely, the Bill of Rights) proclaims that all citizens have the freedom to practice their religion and that there will be no laws prohibiting the free exercise of religion. In the last year we had a shooting at another campus in my district, and a lockdown on my campus for a suspected shooter (someone on the street with a gun who did not end up coming into the building). The day she got back to the office, there was news of multiple mass shootings in the States and she was so unaffected. So a UTA 4 would be four drill periods. And I am of the generation that didnt have mass events constantly, Im 51. Asking the host for a favor right before they are, holding a party is going to result in your favor. Do you own a pet? Worst case, they might show up to work armed, and their colleagues would assume its all part of the training.. that way it can be perceived far more easily as you being responsible in caring for family, and not you personally flaking out. My kid is still dealing with PTSD as a result of that incident, as are a significant number of their colleagues who were also present that day. Its a 5-7 minute trip (if youre sprinting) to the nearest building with one of those. OP, Im sorry you have to deal with this. I am going out on dinner with him. I was there for maybe 20 minutes in total before my shift supervisor missed me and came along to investigate. This article was originally published on https://www.nevertherightword.com. You also get children with really poor emotional regulation (like, toddler level) and they absolutely need the practice. Theres just not that much to cover. My apartment building fails fire drills because we have false alarms EVERY GOSHDARN WEEK. Edit: please understand I am NOT a highly motivated soldier. Reading your letter, I immediately jumped to the call out sick recommendation. Those types of drills like you did are really for the outside agencies to practice their plans, plus the company has a specific issue like chemical spill that they need to practice. https://www.everytown.org/solutions/active-shooter-drills/. As another university admin assistant (also for a dean) who has just spent the last couple of weeks dealing with a real recent active shooting event on a campus: what?!??!! Things have been chaotic and I need a little time to recoop. We had a workplace training at OldJob that was a full day. I remember there was someone (presumably several administrators) in the hallway repeatedly jiggling the locked door handle and it was suggested to us that they were doing so every time we were loud enough to be heard from the hallway. Precisely, More Training Needed. It was a Jewish Organization, and the week prior was the shooting at the Temple in Pittsburgh. and rejoicing that you get to go home for the day is messed up too. Additionally, if you are pregnant or have recently had a baby, you may also be excused from drill. Im so sorry. Im a teacher and have been in charge of children during these drills. No, you cannot call out sick for drill. Here are some tips to help you make the most of your experience in the Drill Army Reserves: I definitely think Id go the call in sick route. They will likely require documentation supporting your request. Hes a nice person but has very deeply entrenched ideas about mental health, anxiety, young people, and triggers, and I dont want to have to disclose my own mental health diagnoses to him, make him think Im simply not tough enough to handle it, or come across like a millennial snowflake, etc. Many of us tried and we were told we would be written up if we did not attend. Yes, such a good suggestion to take 2 days off. None of these excuses should be used regularly, because inevitably the second you say you need time off for dental work because you have a job interview, you then also need time off for dental work. So,they understand that all you need to do is stay in bed (and watch a movie you just bought). if(typeof ez_ad_units != 'undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[300,250],'nevertherightword_com-large-billboard-2','ezslot_4',182,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-nevertherightword_com-large-billboard-2-0');report this adThis site does not constitute legal, mental, or medical health advice, please consult a competent licensed professional. However, if the OP schedules an appointment with their GP in advance for the day of the training they can use that appointment to discuss anything theyre dealing with. I appreciate that my kiddos school practices emergency in a general sensehere are our hiding spots, could be something weather related or physical security related. i would also call in sick to this. College is a priority. What I wonder is, if you all spend seven hours at work doing not-work, will you have a huge backlog of work the next day? I remember going to a 4th of July party thrown by a combat veteran friend-of-a-friend. OP, if you were to talk to your boss, and he says again you wouldnt be able to take it or something else similarly egregious, you can use the time-honored response, Im not sure what you mean.. Most workplace active shooters are targeted. My elder kid went through a shooting at their workplace a few years ago. Oddly enough I think my boss would have been receptive to the OPs situation and absolutely understood if an active shooter drill was too much for some people but she would have never understood my objection to the mandatory fun (which she was super excited about). Definitely. She knows what to do. Commander's and NCO are told to have everyone present but service will not allow them to give true problem Soldiers discipline for attendance issues. According to the United States Census Bureau, around 13 million workers in the United States have more than one job. The company policy for RST is that it has be approved 30 days before drill (Aug 5-6). But youve already established your workplace isnt likely to be reasonable. Because all you need to do is say these four words. These are typically held one weekend per month, and they can last anywhere from 8 to 12 hours. And if my boss gave me grief about it Id jump straight to calling a lawyer. I worked in a call center. But ours was completely voluntary and staff were told multiple times prior to the session that they could opt out if they werent comfortable attending. I would argue that children shouldnt be doing these drills, either, and everyones time would be better spent working on reducing shootings overall. We know which doors lock and we have a plan if there is a shooter in the hospital. My university installed Bleeding Control Kits on *every* floor of *every* building a couple years ago. And despite having been through all that, my organization has never had a seven hour training for employees. (ex. Most employee admit that they gossip at work and it is part of our human nature to gossip. (Even those who havent had personal connections to any of the many, many mass shootings in recent decades.). With 58th BfSB, it looks like i only have one drill in conflict with this semester. how do you handle soldiers and college? Yeah, at the last staff meeting, there was some talk of replacing our annual watch this decades-old video active shooter training (whichI hate that video so much. (You say you dont have traditional HR, but in a large organization theres probably someone youd go to if you needed to request medical or religious accommodations, report harassment or discrimination, or turn in paperwork for FMLA. Sometimes you just dont want to go to event and thats okay, we get it. It may help to know as a 5th option for opt out that the law enforcement facilitators will almost always offer the opportunity for individuals to opt out of simulation portions by self identifying at the very beginning of the training. CW3 Walker, we must agree to disagree. Attend events and functions, volunteer for leadership positions, and just generally be a positive presence within your unit. Take the next day off too. If you graduated high school in the last 15 years, youve done active shooter drills. We were located in an area where street violence was a significant risk. I feel for all of you whove been affected by this, any of this. Save yourself the heartache and the stress. But safety training for a forklift operator absolutely includes accident prevention, and so does HAZWOPER. If youre super close with them, theyll probably just laugh and say theyll catch you later. Your sweet, naive brain thought it was a good idea to make plans to fill every second. Im looking around to get away cause Im scared of gun being pulled. For some unknown reason, my school decided to get all the terrible feelings trainings done at once, so wed be subjected to trainings on school shootings, teenage suicide, and abuse and neglect issues all in a row. Its almost perfect. he is not a nice guy. Find out more about Divi Cake here. The kids at that school KNEW A SHOOTING COULD HAPPEN. Personally I think if there are ways to prepare people that dont involve trauma, then we should do those. The most serious consequence of missing a drill weekend is getting drummed out of the reserves. For more information, please see our Are they tenants in a building that is having this training for all businesses? He may appear to be superficially nice but he is not kind. This seems to be a growing problem. For example: Due to some past history that I dont want to go into at work, I am going to opt of out Tuesdays training. If he again says something ridiculous like asking if you wouldnt be able to take it, you could say, Yes, so I wont be attending. If he tells you its mandatory and you need to attend, you can say, Then I need to request a formal, legal accommodation to opt out. Save my name and email in this browser for the next time I comment. Im surprised at the number of commenters who seem to reject calibrating reptilian-brain thinking. Because its unnecessary. I understand how are hard this is and cant imagine having to deal with a unsupportive supervisor on top of it. When I voiced my concerns, he made a few jokes about how he would simply redirect the shooter to a younger person, then asked if I was saying I wouldnt be able to take it.. As a former company commander in the NG I routinely let my personnel miss or make up drills. I spent a little time thinking about what I would do if we were robbed. Christians, similarly, typically attend church on Sundays. Otherwise wow. Heres where it gets a little morally ambiguous. I was 5th grade when Columbine happened, young enough my parents tried to keep us away from it, old enough I knew everything anyway. Teachers arent allowed to opt out. Know both your annual drill schedule and your college course schedule. Your boss sounds like a huge jerk. Yes, absolutely, get a doctors note so you have backup. His video gave at least one employee a panic attack at her desk. You are attending a religious event 4. A peer/fellow manager can say things in a much more direct way than you might be comfortable with doing with your own boss because of the power dynamics in play. Thankfully my boss was fantastic and made sure I didnt have to attend an actual training. Read More 10 Effective Ways to Deal with Gossip at WorkContinue. As one robber was walking me from the back of the store to the front, with a gun in my ribs, I managed to remain calm enough to figure out how to not get taken out of the store as a hostage. I had a young kid when Sandy Hook happened, as many of us old folks did, but even those who are childless should at least be able to imagine the trauma these drills can cause. You Were in a Car Accident 8. Weekends are usually the time when we schedule important family gatherings like weddings, christenings, birthday parties, and anniversary get-togethers. In public places, in crowds, out and aboutits not a risk thats on my mind at all. Heres a list of foolproof excuses thatare sure to get you out of any weekend plan. I would absolutely call in sick. consider that he might be telling the truth. That kind of multi-hour practical drill strikes me as very useful. Ever. (Voting to change policies CAN help, but not the way were doing it.). Ask for Forgiveness, Not Permission: The best way to be convincing when calling or emailing for a sick day is to TELL them you're ill and cannot come in, rather than asking if it's okay. Heck see if you can schedule an appointment JUST FOR THAT DAY. Most of the others sat around, out in the open, chatting quietly. Balance this wisely. Fast forward to this current moment in your life, (whereveryou may be) and youve found that youve hit a certain point where things have taken a massive swing. Ive seen it enough years that I opted to just skip past the video in this years training module. Maybe hes friendly, but that doesnt equate to nice or kind. Im a little bit too old to really be a member of the school-shooting-generation (in that I was in undergrad by the time Sandy Hook happened), and my impression when I hear my younger peers talking about it (and from some commenters in threads below) is that the pervasiveness (of both the drills and the threat) is what makes them so traumatizing for many people. Even ignoring personal history, seven hours is enough to upset anyone! If someone has a heart attack in my vicinity, I can call emergency services or run a few hundred yards to get the defibrillator, but someone else will have to start CPR. We hope that these excuses will help you get some much needed you time. Im a survivor of gun violence and Ive lost a loved one in a mass shooting. Husband noped right on out of that and worked from home that day. No one likes drill weekend. Given the reaction youve gotten from trying to push back, I wouldnt bother trying to explain why this is a problem. Because lets be honest, who does not want to have a hot mug of coffee on the terrace while watching the rain pouring onto the glass of your windows, making a thud sound and yet so calming? how do I get out of an active-shooter drill at my office? They pointed out there is no way to think of and train for every scenario, and doing so could create a false sense of safety, not to mention costing a lot of money and raising anxiety among staff. Bloodsucking Bastards is out on in select theaters and On Demand this Friday . Can confirm, this works well. But does it require the full drill, or can you do a security discussion instead? Im a boomer and if I can understand I dont know what your bosss problem is. We were left on our own for that. Theyre homeschooling now. Thank you for sharing them! Then you can avoid the worst of the after-event commentary. [M]onkey. It should be the same level of training they get for things like earthquakes, fires, or hazardous weather: how to recognize a situation that requires action, where you go to evacuate/shelter and what to do if a problem arises, how/who do you notify. Weve had enough fires in our building (five during 2020-2021) that everyone knows the fire sprinklers go off and the big problem is flooding. Do that after lunch the day before and you can go home very believably. then you can divert questions with details also to the oh no, im afraid its a private matter, they asked me to not divulge all the details, hey mom, would you like to have an emergency where you slip and fall and twist your ankle next tuesday. Im sorry. What could possibly take seven hours to cover for one topic?? Work from home dont only give you the benefit of only flexible working time and let you sleep a little later than normal. I got volunteer hours and free pizza, and I was 12 so I was very excited to mess around with fake blood and brains. Agreed, the boss here is an arsehole with a thin layer of affability on top. I have tried to transfer out of this unit 3 times. Agreed, why is this training seven hours long? Communicate early and often with both your NG chain of command and also with your college professors. The shooting didnt follow most of the normal scripts for these things, so it was mass chaos anyway. Talk to your units First Sergeant or Commander if you believe you have a valid reason for being excused from an upcoming drill. We have emergency drills several times a year can be fire, tornado, bomb, or shooter; it seems to be active shooter more than half. Forums It was on my mind constantly. We all live busy lives and we know that there will be times when we are called on to help out to babysit for a week, a weekend, or even half a day. Anyone can offer this training, and who knows the background of the trainer, if theyve informed and/or worked with law enforcement to plan and schedule the exercise, or if they have any background in the psychological impacts of active shooter situations, simulated or not (doubtful). Im just old enough to have gotten out of high school with very minimal active shooter type worries. Its a nightmare. Yes, its a well-known fact that the most effective way TO LEARN is during a state of abject terror maintained over multiple hours. Lets be honest; we all havethese episodes(ifyou dont, most of us do). Like, the drill should be a relatively calm way to practice and build some muscle memory to rely on in case the thing happens. Forcing people to pretend theyd died???? My sons had fire drills, but no active shooter drills. NTRW is supported by adverts and affiliate marketing links. A seven hour training would be insane for any work place that isnt on a military installation or the Capitol/Pentagon/etc and EVEN THEN it would be bananapants crazy. (Funny how this rarely happens when the rental office is open; some hapless security guard has to try to decode the alarm system fault codes and tell the fire department what happened.). If this were a short (10-20 min) drill, Id say you might be out of luck. Should issue directions? Professor at a college that had a mass shooting. Make up a story of how your roommate needs your special attention since they are suffering from a fever. I grew up in the era of mass shootings. Dark humor and gallows humor is very common in my family and we sometimes get horrified looks from the comments we make (like joking about a 2-for-1 euthanasia special when we were dealing with an elderly family pet and my elderly grandmother going through health issues at the same time). Yes. It waits till the last minute to give Soldier's orders which makes employers upset as well as Soldier. SiteGround boasts a whole list of fantastic features at amazingly affordable prices. -Get together with some friends and head to the range. I know you said your boss is normally nice, but hes being a bonehead, insensitive jerk about this if he doesnt allow you to quietly bow out. However, just this once, you want to put what YOU want first and theres nothing wrong with that! Call in sick and deal with it later. There were two separate school shootings in my district in the time frame that I was middle school through high school. single. Even if it isnt, its going to take a while,and you may not be able to make it up. It was a tough meeting. Could we catch up at a less hectic week? Each section contains a mixture of fascinating research, creative prompts, activities and instructions, sensory stimuli, and inspiration. Also, youre making some broad assumptions here about the quality of training delivered in all workplaces. Maybe they dont want to relive their experiences either? Each year the US Bureau of Labor Statistics releases its data on volunteering in the United States. If you feel you need to address it with your boss directly, you could do that while being vague. My kiddos are teenagers now, and several times a year we get a school communication (simultaneous call, text, email) that there has been a threat to their school.
