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Transport firms are vulnerable to disruption from severe weather conditions.
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In such circumstances, should staff be paid if they are unable to work?
Words: Gareth Edwards The first week of February 2009 gave the UK its heaviest snowfall for 18 years Many individuals were unable to get into work, and hundreds of schools and businesses kept their doors closed. But snow isn't the only weather phenomenon that businesses have to battle.
Consider June 2007, when severe flooding in south-west England, the Midlands and Yorkshire and Humberside killed 13 people, and left 48,000 homes and 7,000 businesses deluged with water.
In such circumstances, employees may be unable to get into work, and, in the case of truck drivers, it may simply be unsafe or impossible for them to deliver a load.
However, employees are only entitled to be paid for the work that they do. If they are unable to get to work, or they cannot carry out their work, an employer does not have to pay them. In a small haulage firm, the boss may well decide to pay his loyal drivers anyway in the interests of maintaining future goodwill.
However, not all employers are quite so understanding. During February's snowfall, members of the Transport Salaried Staffs' Association, who work on the London Underground, were told not to come to work because the buses and most of the Tithes were not operating. The employees have since been told that the time away from work must be taken as unpaid leave, or deducted from annual leave. Understandably they are very angry about this.
Bad weather policy
Nonetheless, a hard-hearted haulier is perfectly entitled to tell a driver: "Don't come to work today and, by the way, I won't be paying you or you can take it as holiday."
To avoid any misunderstandings, the employee's contract of employment should set out clearly the policies that apply. Some will already have tad weather policies' so that those who are unable to work because of bad weather know if they will still be entitled to pay. Employers who do not have a bad weather policy should consider introducing one.
Whatever the law says, good employers will tend to exercise discretion. Telling employees that any further days off work will he deducted from annual leave or taken as unpaid leave may be draconian where the weather causes widespread and obvious disruption. It will be more received in situations where the weather is bad but it is not reported as causing any disruption.
Working from home
Employers should consider allowing employees such as traffic office clerks to work from home. Look at the contract of employment and any internal policies; the type of work a particular employee carries out; and the facilities needed to enable an employee to work from home. In severe weather conditions, employers may be considered by a tribunal to be unreasonable if they refuse to allow an employee to work from home where possible.
Allowing employees to work from home where there is widespread disruption, together with advice to avoid travelling can help employers avoid any potential health and safety issues. Employers have a duty of care towards their employees, and it is not necessarily in an employer's best interest to place employees under pressure to travel to work when the advice from authorities is to avoid travelling.
There is no duty on employers to pay expenses to employees that occur as a result of the had weather (such as overnight accommodation if a staff member becomes stranded) unless their contract stipulates otherwise.
Where schools are closed, affected employees may be entitled to time off work for dependents. An employee is legally entitled to take a 'reasonable' amount of time off work to deal with emergencies involving a dependent.
A dependent is an employee's spouse; civil partner; children; parents; anyone who lives in the same household (excluding tenants and lodgers); and those who reasonably depend on the employee to make arrangements for the provision of care. An employee is only entitled to time off for dependents in certain situations, two of which may be applicable in snowy weather. These are: • Due to the unexpected disruptions or termination of arrangements for the care of a dependent.
• To deal with an incident that involves a child of the employee and which occurs unexpectedly during school hours.
There is no set answer as to when a situation will be considered an emergency. Employment tribunals consider the time between an employee knowing that there is a risk of disruption and the risk becoming fact as relevant to whether they are entitled to time off for a dependent.
This right exists regardless of length of service and whether or not they are employed on a full-time or part-time basis. Workers (those on non-employee contracts) and the self-employed are excluded from the right to time off for dependents.
If an employer suspects that this right is being abused, the employee should be dealt with in accordance with the contractual or workplace disciplinary procedures that are in place.
• Gareth Edwards is a partner in the employment team ad Veale Washrough Lawyers