Should employers pay staff for "Snow" Day

the182guy

I think a problem with small businesses is some of the staff were able to get to work but other were not. So there is no simple solution, if they pay all staff then it's unfair on those that did get to work, on the other hand if they don't pay those that did not come in then it's unfair on those employees because although some might have just been trying it on, there will be genuine people that were simply unable to get to work.

rupee99

Whalebox wrote: »

Can I have people's opnions on whether employers should pay staff for Monday if they were told not to come to work?

My boss said he will pay everyone but they must take it as a day's annual leave. When I expressed my astonishment (I must admit I assumed without question that everyone would be paid) he said he was astounded that I would expect the company to pay everyone.

On Tuesday we were told to get in if we could and I must admit for Tuesday I think it is fair that those who did not make it should be asked to use a days leave if they wanted to be paid.

Any HR experts out there?!?

Whilst it is an unfortunate circumstance, you have failed to meet your part of the contract (i.e. turn up and work) therefore your employer is not obliged to meet his (i.e. pay you).

This is not a matter of HR policy, it is simple contract law.

speedbird1973

MrsFranky wrote: »

Why should I lose a day's leave if there were no possible means of transport to get to work? I don't drive, and live too far away to make walking to work an option. I think employers are being unfair, they have already budgeted for those salaries to be paid for the day, and not everyone is employed in profit making organisations, so there is no loss of revenue. It's like employers want someone to be held responsible for something that was out of everybody's control.

Because you get paid to do as day's work - if you don't do a days work they don't have an obligation to pay you. Chapter and verse is in one of the broadsheets today, I forget which. Companies can tell you when to take annual leave. I would suggest complaining about a lack of notice would get you nowhere in these exceptional circumstances.

Our policy.

You can't get in then take a days leave or annual leave unless you can work at home.
If you can get in, however late, then you don't take leave and get paid for the day.

xx_Jo_xx

I dont mean to Hijack your thread, and apolgise in advance if thats what I am doing, but I fear if I open a new thread, I will be told there is one already open.....so Im hoping Im doing the right thing and not offending anyone.

On a similar vein, my little one went back to school on Tuesday - which is when we got the worst of our snow. School called and said the school was being closed and I had to come and collect him, which I did. I took work home with me and our back office system is web-based so have been able to do bits and pieces from home as the school has been closed both Wednesday and Today.

My work are now telling me that if I dont make it to work tomorrow due to the fact my little one isnt at school I will be forced to take it as holiday or as unpaid leave.

Can they do that?

Spirit_2

Jo
Your employer has been reasonable so far. From what I can see allowing you to leave early on Tuesday and WAH for 2 days, saying that further time will be treated as absence - and giving you the choice of designating it as a day of paid holiday or to take a day of unpaid leave.

I am in HR and snowbound at home too. Yesterday I could not WAH as powercuts made remote access impossible so I took it as holiday, today I WAH - both days with my employers agreement and in line with the advice we had sent out to all managers and staff. For school closures generally we allow holiday to be taken at short notice or offer for staff to work at another time or take a day of unpaid leave.

Unless you have a specific term in your contract, there is no automatic right to paid time off for closures/transport/weather.......your employers action sounds fair so far.

Good Luck

Decyfa

Our place Tuesday 11 staff outa 30 made it in.. They whipped us up a fry up and arranged the elder members of staff and the ones living further away transport home.. The Manager shut the branch at 3pm. The other 19 staff have been told that either they lose a days pay take it unpaid or use a days holiday. I think its only fair I live about 20 mins walk from work and would be expected to turn up no matter what.

rcg11x

Zandoni,

I also work in a school but have been told I must make up the hours. How/why will you get paid?

graphicsisourname

does anyone have a definitive answer on this matter? there was an article on the BBC website which says:

Q. I couldn't get to work because of the snow. Can my boss dock my pay?
Very few jobs - except perhaps some of those in industries such as construction - have a clause written into their contract saying that if employees cannot get in to work because of weather they lose a day's pay.
Employees have statutory protection against an unauthorised deduction being made from their wages, so if the employer has no contractual right to deduct pay and if the employee does not consent, deducting pay would be potentially subject to legal challenge.
In any event, given the widespread disruption in many parts of the country and travel warnings not to make non-essential journeys, it is unlikely that many managers would take this step.

There are six of us in our department who all commute everyday to work from different areas of mid and south Wales and west England, we all commute on our own as there are no other employees who live locally to carshare with - 4 of us including myself travel an 80 mile a day roundtrip to work in mid Wales, there's no train station near work so it's the car or nothing to get in for us. Last Wednesday 5 of us were off due to the snow, many other people in the company were off due to the snow making the journey too dangerous to get in, the one member of our department who made it in left at lunchtime due to the snow falling heavy on the roads he uses to get home and told the MD he was leaving and was told it was fine as he didn't want to see him get stuck.

Again yesterday there were many employees off due to the snow or who went home due to the snow, today we've been told we can either lose pay or holidays equal to the time we were off, there's is no provision in tour contracts for adverse weather conditions that we are aware of or can remember. The company has never done this before, neither has it made provisions or assistance for home working for our department. Is there anything we can do, is that BBC article on the money or is it just one of those situations in which we cannot do anything?

jdturk

I don't think there is a definitive answer on this, some articles say its a deduction of wages but then the counter arguement for this is that in a contract it works both ways and if you can not get in to work then you are not fulfilling your side of the contract and thus the company doesn not have to pay your wages for that day.

However if the company tells you not to come in that is their choice and the employees should be paid.


The generally accepted rule is that if you cannot get in you do not get paid if you can get in you do get paid. As for if you can't get in you have the choice of unpaid leave or holiday.

lifesizedoll

Hi I am going through other different problems with my employment at the moment and have been doing a lot of research on contracts and employment. Your employer can tell you when to take your holidays but they must give you twice the amount of time they want you to take off, to inform you. So he wanted you to take one day, so therefore he needs to give you two days notice i.e. he wants you to have monday off so he would have to tell you by saturday morning by the latest. Also employees are entitled to be paid if they are ready and willing to work but their employer has not provided them with any work to do, unless your employment contract says otherwise. All this information is on the citizens advice website.