The Rights Of An Employee During Bad Weather
The winter season of this year has been unusually colder than in the preceding winter seasons. Blizzards and more than 3 ft of snow have enveloped almost every nation in the Northern hemisphere from Japan, China, Europe and the United States.
In the UK, a lot of people were constrained to stay at home and unintentionally skip work or work from home. Heavy snowstorm has at all times been a predicament and causes transportation and schools to be disrupted. But most of all, profit-losses amount to the millions for lots of businesses due to the fact that their workers get trapped due to difficult weather and keep themselves out of probable harm’s way.
So if an employee cannot come to work because of seasonal extremes, what are his/her rights in terms of pay and leeway?
First off, pay deduction always comes to mind when it comes to situations like this. There have been variations of policies and arguments in which the ultimate decision is generally based on the contract among employee and employer.
Usually, employers are not allowed to deduct their employee’s pay except if a specific specification is printed within the contract of the worker. While it’s possible, non-attendance due to harsh weather should be given consideration by most companies.
Some companies argue that workers who fail to report for work without approval do not deserve to get paid no matter what the circumstances are. This, however, will be resolved by the Employment Tribunal. Since there is no particular regulation on this matter, final decisions are made by taking into account the employee’s situation.
The typical approach of employers in cases such as this is to determine whether the employee made all possible attempt to head to the place of work. A simple phone call or other system of communication (email, text message, etc.) is enough for most employers so long as there is incontestable evidence.
If you are a father or a mother who needs to look after your kid/s due to their school being closed, you should not be subjected to any punishment as indicated under the Employment Rights Act of 1996.
Even with the protection of law, this will not prevent employers to deduct the amount of pay for those days you need to spend with your kids. Filing for sick leave will most likely prevent them from deducting your pay.
If your employer decides to deduct your salary, he/the company should state the reasons including the policies in a clear verbal or written form.
For people who are able to make their way to get to work in the face of a bad weather, there really is no special reward that will be given. In truth, those who do get to work are compelled to work much harder in order to compensate for the ones who weren’t able to make it and expecting to get a day off in exchange will not be viable.
On the other hand, no good effort goes unseen. This could be an advantage for growth for someone who shows his/her competitiveness in the office.