Snowed in? Know your rights!
With a vast number of schools and nurseries closed due to the adverse weather conditions, what does this mean for working parents?
Isn't snow great? That lovely sparkly white stuff - it makes fabulous snowmen and just makes everything look so pretty.
That is until you remember this sudden deluge has brought the country to a halt, making the roads and rails treacherous and forcing many businesses to temporarily close.
Now most of us probably think this is great - who's going to complain about being forced to stay at home as work is shut? But things can be very different for parents who work.
Working parents
Like many parents, in this weather I spend hours listening to the local radio (and checking out its website) to find out if my children's nursery is one of the many schools and pre-schools that have been unable to open for a second day due to lack of staff. And the news is usually pretty dismal, and the children have to stay home.
Working from home
The trouble is, like many parents I work from home - so the weather really has little impact on whether or not I can meet my deadlines. Having two young children to look after at the same time, however, definitely does!
Clearly all is fine and dandy if your company has been forced to close too - you can happily spend all day making snowmen with the kids. But what if your office or workplace is open, your colleagues have battled their way in and you could work from home. How on earth can you do your job while looking after the kids? And if you can't will your pay packet suffer?
What are your rights?
Well, it all depends on your employer as to how you will be treated. The Employment Rights Act 1996 does protect employees to some extent as it means employers cannot simply dock pay without a good reason.
That said, as a general rule employees are entitled to be paid only for the work they have done. So if you can't come into the office or work from home to complete the work you're paid to do, your employer doesn't have to pay you.
Indeed, in theory your employer could decide to take disciplinary action against you if they felt you were able to work but had chosen not to - or dock your pay. Yikes!
That said, given that this would involve complying with the minimum statutory disciplinary procedure - plus employers would need to guarantee consistency between all employees - this would probably be regarded as a severe way of dealing with the situation.
So what is the likely outcome?
Contracts and goodwill
Well, you may be lucky and find that your contract or workplace policy has a clause that deals with adverse weather conditions, allowing employees who can't work to still be paid. Alternatively you may find your employer will still pay employees as a goodwill gesture.
But what if there isn't such a policy in place?
Emergency unpaid leave
Ed Bowsher gives some tips on how to make sure a new baby doesn’t destroy your finances
Employees are entitled to a certain amount of unpaid leave in order to deal with emergencies concerning their dependents (children, spouses, partners, parents, or anyone that relies on the employee for assistance).
And while this would not normally include employees needing to take time off due to not having made childcare arrangements, it could be argued that school closures (which are only announced in the morning) constitute an emergency situation.
Make up the time
Another option taken by many companies is to allow employees the time off, as long as they make it up later. So depending on the job you do you could work late (when the kids have gone to bed) and/or make up the time when the weather has improved by working extended hours.
Holiday
And of course, your employer may decide that employees can deduct the time off from their annual leave entitlement.
Practical measures
Alternatively, there are other measures we can try ourselves to deal with the situation.
Roping in relatives to help at short notice with childcare is an obvious solution. But if your folks live too far away or are unable to help, and you know (and trust) another parent in the same boat you could try and share childcare between you.
For example, one parent could take all of the kids in the morning and give them lunch whilst the other one works, then swap over for the afternoon and dinner. This does rather depend on knowing another parent of similarly aged kids who'd be up for participating at short notice (and that you're both prepared to look after numerous kids at once!) but does at least show willing to your employer.
All going well you'll come up with a workable solution between you to deal with the situation that won't result in losing pay.
Be responsible
The main thing is really to keep your employer informed.
- Let your employer know as soon as you know you won't be able to get in to work and discuss your options.
- Explain why you can't travel in (schools closed and no childcare available, cancelled trains, car snowed in, warnings on travel news etc) and ask what you should do (work from home if possible, etc).
- Finally, be sure to clarify how this will affect your pay (will time off be taken as unpaid leave, holiday or can it be made up later?).
Above all, remember that snow days are a nightmare for businesses so it is bound to be greatly appreciated if you can somehow make arrangements to get to work/work from home.
But of course, whatever your company's procedure you could find resentment in the office if some workers have struggled their way in while others must stay at home due to childcare commitments.
Let's just hope colleagues can be understanding regarding these unusual conditions - what they probably don't realise is that after an impromptu day looking after over-excited kids you'll probably find yourself far more frazzled than them!
Get help from lovemoney.com
If Christmas has left you feeling distinctly poorer, lovemoney.com can help you boost those coffers!
First, adopt this goal: Build up your savings
Next, watch this video: How to save when you've got no money
Finally, if you've been affected by the snow - either lost money or had your pay docked why not post your experiences on our Q&A site and ask other lovemoney.com members for advice?
More: Property hotspots of 2009 |This mistake will cost you a fortune
Most Recent
Comments
-
I have a friend who's a school caretaker. When the school closes due to snow (which it seems to do at the drop of a hat), he still gets paid, as do the teachers and all other staff. After all, taxpayer will pick up the tab, so why not? As per usual, public sector comes out trumps at the expense of everybody else.
REPORT This comment has been reported. -
Couldn't agree more Cunnaxxa. Our section in work maintains relatively high morale relative to other sections. Other sections are managed in a very autocratic way, no freedom to do job, very little trust. Our manager has a wider perspective on things and so is willing to come and go provided people do not exploit a situation. During the recent snow most of the other sections were empty while our section was fully staffed with some colleagues travelling long distances in very poor conditions. People treated badly by managers will not make the extra effort when it is required. Unfortunately a good few of the managers in the organisation I work for can't or don't want to see this. I think they will get a masterclass over this years winter.
REPORT This comment has been reported. -
I remember a scenario from the cold spell back in January of this year, when we were hit with heavy snow. Several colleagues rang in to say that they were not prepared to risk travelling to work, so our manager said he would make arrangements to pick them up and drop them off. They were picked up for their night shift, which started at 2130, and they worked through to 0600. When they inquired about getting back home, they were told that it was their responsibility to get home, and the company wouldn't help them. The following night, they rang in again to say they couldn't get to work, but the manager insisted he'd send a car to pick them up. They all refused (all six of them). Turned out that one of them took four hours to walk home in the snow, after working an 8 1/2 hour night shift, and wasn't prepared to do it all again. The colleague who lived the closest took nearly an hour to walk home in the snow. The simple fact was that they were promised a lift in and a lift home, but once the company got them on site, they were no longer interested in the employees welfare. The morale of this story is that employee attitudes are often dictated by the treatment they receive from their employer. If you are treated right, you'll often go the extra mile to help out when the situation demands, but if your employer treats you like a muppet, or simply a number, then what incentive do you have to go that extra mile? At my current employment, all seven of us turned up, every single day, because our employer respects us as people. Always remember that morale filters down, and if you have a heartless boss, you'll probably have a very little positve morale, but if you have an empowering boss, you'll have excellent moral. Some people wonder what this 'morale' is all about, but when there are extenuating circumstances, like bad weather, then 'morale' often dictates whether people go out of their way to help, or just stand back.
REPORT This comment has been reported.
Do you want to comment on this article? You need to be signed in for this feature
22 December 2010