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What happens when the snow falls? Do you have a Bad Weather policy for staff?

Do you remember January 2010 when hundreds of millions of working hours were lost due to the weather conditions and what about November last year, the bonfires were almost still smouldering when the snow came and caught us out again. Forecasters are now suggesting a cold, long winter ahead. 

So what can employers do to minimise the impact, well, stopping short of investing in your own supply of grit and a snow plough, which is taking things a bit far, you can make sure that you have measures in place and a policy to let staff know exactly what the process will be should a heavy snowfall land upon us again.

You may feel, as the employer that you simply refuse to pay staff who fail to make it to work when the weather turns.  Isn’t it the employee's responsibility to get to their place of work or accept the implications of not doing so?  No, it isn’t as simple as that, well, when it comes to employing staff, it never is, is it?

Take the following examples: - An employee, who has a 15 minute walk from work, hears reports of traffic chaos. The trains are at a standstill and the Police are asking drivers to stay off the roads so the employee uses this as an excuse to spend the day at home. Potentially the employee may not be entitled to any pay and this could even be a disciplinary matter. 

An employee living 20 miles from work hears the same story on the radio. With no access to a train and a drive against official advice, an employer cannot reasonably expect him to travel to work and so different criteria applies; how he is treated will depend on his employment contract and the company's severe weather policy.

Your staff manual should encourage employees to consider alternative ways of getting to work, or, if there are none, if possible encourage working from home.  It should also remind employees of the terms of the employment contract and provide them with clear options and guidelines in terms of time off and what is paid for.

Enforcement of unauthorised absence as unpaid leave needs to be clearly set out in the contract of employment and reinforced in the policy; otherwise it is likely that you could be carrying out an unauthorised deduction from wages which can cause you other problems. 

But as with most issues around managing your staff, it goes deeper than the snow.  Managed wrong and you can cause relationship problems with members of staff who are very committed, loyal employees, but equally, you cannot just let employees decide for themselves what to do without a framework to work within, or you may alienate your employees for a different reason.

The key to it is to be proactive.  A clear employment contract backed up by a policy is essential. Take steps now to agree and implement a Bad Weather Policy for Staff. 

• Agree in principle what you will expect of staff
• Advise what the options are if staff cannot get into work – unpaid leave, annual leave, maybe flexitime
• Do you need to upgrade any systems or equipment that would enable employees to work from home easier and at least keep the basic wheels of your business turning?

If you need assistance with the checking of an existing policy or development of such, Fidler & Pepper HR Services can help you. 

Fidler & Pepper can help you with business and individual legal advice either online or at one of our 3 offices in Mansfield, Sutton-in-Ashfield or Kirkby-in-Ashfield, Nottinghamshire.

November 2011