Okay, if it snows......

[tech_guy]

Okay, if it snows how do I stand with regards to the school being open and myself being unable to get there?

 

You see, I live 25 miles from the school and so far the current weather forecast is indicating that it's going to be bad in my home town but not too bad in the area in and around the town where I work.

 

The school has said in the past that they'll deduct a days pay from staff who don't turn up for work but I think this is completely unreasonable and that each case should be judged according to the circumstances.

 

I guess I'm lucky in some respects as I live in the county town so I can just tell them to ring up the LA and ask them what the actual conditions are like if they start griping!

[featured_spectre]

unless they can prove you made no effort to get in, then they are unable to dock your pay, as you made a reasonable attempt but could not do so safely. My work reasoned that as I lived under 5 miles I could walk to work if the car was not in use, my argument back was that if they were willing to pay for me to have fully thermal lined clothes that I didnt have to change out of at work, and would be happy that I would be dosed up to the eyeballs on painkillers due to my medical condition then yes I would have walked in. Since that point they never argued when I couldnt come in. Plus most of the stuff I could do remotely

[RTFM]

I honestly don't understand peoples argument sometimes (we are going through this at our place currently too). It isn't the school's responsibility where it's staff choose to live. If they make the conscious decision to live (in this case) 25 miles from work and know they will have to commute and then when the weather turns bad they say they can't, why should the school be punished for that?

 

Ultimately it isn't as big a deal for associate members of staff as it is teaching staff as the school wont need to pay for a day's cover is an associate members doesnt come into school but I still think that as long as the school is open, if the staff can't get in that isnt the school's issue. Now, if the school closed to pupils due to concerns over transport and staff can't get in thats different....just my opinion.

[jamesb]

Got to agree with RTFM here - if people don't show up to work due to snow then they get deducted a day's holiday. This is why I bought a set of snow chains, which aren't expensive and are fairly easy to put on. Even without snow chains if you drive sensibly it isn't really an issue. Yes, your employer does have a duty of care regarding your travel to and from work but you've also got to take some responsibility yourself.

 

If you're really in doubt phone the school in the morning and explain the difficulty to them, then see what they say.

[localzuk]

Trying to travel on icy/snowy roads goes against the police and council's own advice to the public to avoid travelling unless absolutely necessary.

 

It is then unfair if another government owned and operated organisation say 'well, you followed the council's advice, so now we're going to dock your pay'.

 

It is at the head's discretion of course, but generally here, our staff don't get their pay docked should they get stuck in snow (we're surrounded by Exmoor, so people live there and obviously during snow get stuck).

[fafster]

If they make the conscious decision to live (in this case) 25 miles from work and know they will have to commute and then when the weather turns bad they say they can't, why should the school be punished for that?

 

Why don't we flip that around?

 

If the school makes a concious decision to employ someone that lives 25 miles away and know they will have to commute and then when the weather turns bad they say they can't, why should the individual be punished for that?

 

IMO if the weather is sufficiently bad to prevent travel, then the wellbeing of the person is the priority. I know that if my employer gave me an ultimatum of "come to work, or you're not being paid" and then I crashed my car due to attempting travel, they'd be speaking to my solicitor.

[tech_guy]

No snow so easy journey in today! Rather relieved.

[Gatt]

depends on

 

A) how much snow has fallen at the OPs home

B) how well the OP's local council is at ensuring the roads are open

 

We had about an inch of snow this morning, no sign of any gritters from Rochdale, I work in Salford, I made the effort to drive in, but the roads were treacherours - even going at an avergae of 20mph.. roads hadn;t been clared or gritted so it was full of slush, my car slid round each corner and twice I nearly hit lampposts as I slid round.. Motorways were clear, but again I think that was just down to traffic clearing them..

 

Its also not just the state of the roads that concern me, its the other muppets who think its ok to drive like morons.. Had 2 of them overtake me because they were too impatient to wait behind me..

 

had it been another inch or so, I would have questioned going in myself..

 

Needs of the few (me and my family) outway the needs of the many.. I'd rather lose a days pay than risk life and limb on the roads..

Edited November 30, 2010 by Gatt
typo

[GREED]

The real problem is the individual employers/schools. The bottom line is that by saying you will be docked pay or loose holiday is indirecly bullying people into going into work. Some people cannot afford to loose pay, and so feel they have no option but to rick their lives (and lets be fair, January this year is was risking lives). The employer has no issue with this, and if they get hurt they turn round and say 'we didn't force them in'. Where you live has nothing to do with it. I live 4 miles from work, walkable yes, but last January I would have ended up with broken limbs after 1 miles I would promise you. The country is not set up yet to deal with heavy icy conditions (unlike most of northan Europe!), but it seems to be catering for business rather than public safety.

 

I realise that humans being humans we will try and take advantage of the situation, and 'have a snow day' with the merest coverage of frost (!), but I think it is totally wrong that employers are taking this stance, especially this year after January's snow.

[Gatt]

Counil here have put the onus on the schools to be open, they have even sent stated that staf will have pay docked if the dont show up!

RM - similar story - if schools are closed - paid leave, schools open / roads clear but dont go in - we have to take it as a holiday..

 

However, If I get up and find my route from the house to the main drag is under 3-4 inches of snow - there is snow way I'm going in...

[Hightower]

We had about an inch of snow this morning

 

had it been another inch or so, I would have questioned going in myself..

 

Wow, a full inch. Thank goodness it didn't snow that extra inch otherwise it might have put our untouched roads to shame. Only had about 24 inches here, no biggie.

[Gatt]

it is amazing how such a small amount of snow can bring the country to a halt..

 

TBH, I would probably still attempt to tet to work unless the wheels of my car were more than half deep in snow.. did this in Jan and didn't get very far...

And as for public transport..... it only takes a leaf on a railway track to stop the trains!

[Hightower]

I'm off to do some handbrake turns in the estate........

[GREED]

I loved reports from Finland last January, saying how they live 24/7 with snow it is a way of life for them, and telling us how rubbish we are with it... which is 100% spot on!

[HarryMonkey]

I've often wondered how it is that people are unable to get to work because of the bad conditions yet can get to the top of the highest hill in the area to take their kids sledging!

[plexer]

I loved reports from Finland last January, saying how they live 24/7 with snow it is a way of life for them, and telling us how rubbish we are with it... which is 100% spot on!

 

Thats part of it though isn't it they have it 24/7 and have to cope with it snow seems to be getting more prevelant in the uk now but you'd think it hardly ever snowed going by peoples reactions to it.

 

Ben

[Andrew_C]

You wouldn't think it was beyond the wit of man to set up a system whereby in the event of snow, storms, plagues of frogs, or whatever, teachers and support staff would go to their nearest school and provide a level of cover there. Interesting "on the hoof" lessons for the kids, pay for the staff, fewer cars on the road, everyone happy. Just a thought...

[Gatt]

You wouldn't think it was beyond the wit of man to set up a system whereby in the event of snow, storms, plagues of frogs, or whatever, teachers and support staff would go to their nearest school and provide a level of cover there. Interesting "on the hoof" lessons for the kids, pay for the staff, fewer cars on the road, everyone happy. Just a thought...

 

Isn't that what they are actually supposed to do? I'm sure its part of school contracts that you are supposed to go to your nearest school...

[GREED]

Awesome, I would only need to walk to the next road to the primary school there. I am sure their network needs some massive upgrading!

[sted]

Isn't that what they are actually supposed to do? I'm sure its part of school contracts that you are supposed to go to your nearest school...

 

i think they were talking about setting something like that up in sheffield and the teachers unions were dead against it iirc

there is also the crb and related issues if the 1st time you see a teacher is when its snowing how do you know its them and not joe bloggs?

[36Degrees]

My journey to work is always the same - I can carefully get out of my village without too much issue on to the main roads and then everything is fine until I reach the small town where the school is. Then it's just an ice rink with no roads gritted, including the slight hill where the school actually sits. It's just enough of a hill to make it a toboggan run when ice has been covered in snow and then it freezes again.

 

As to the driving 25 miles to work, which is what I do, the reason is very simple; I need the job. If there were employment opportunities where I live then I would have applied for them. There aren't so both my wife and I have to travel in opposite directions and we can't afford to move house even if we could find jobs in the same town.

[localzuk]

Isn't that what they are actually supposed to do? I'm sure its part of school contracts that you are supposed to go to your nearest school...

 

Yeah, that's in all national teacher contracts so I've been told, and has been for decades.

[GREED]

Yeah, that's in all national teacher contracts so I've been told, and has been for decades.

 

It's a great idea in principle

[Hawkeyez]

"I'm off to do some handbrake turns in the estate........"

 

:-) That was me in the staff carpark at 7am yesterday while it was empty... the joy of having a 4-whell drive Jap car.

 

Gary

[elsiegee40]

Isn't that what they are actually supposed to do? I'm sure its part of school contracts that you are supposed to go to your nearest school...

 

Yes BUT

 

Someone turns up claiming to be a teacher from another school closed due to snow.

HT at local school doesn't know this person from Adam.

HT has no means of double-checking because the other school is closed.

The HT would be breaching Safeguarding rules by letting this person come into contact with children.