Winter Weather Employment Policy could take Bitterness out of Freeze Chaos

01/01/2011

Merseyside businesses are being advised to implement winter weather policies to avoid employment issues arising from cold snaps.

HR expert Elaine Courtney, of Liverpool-based Courtney Consultancy Ltd, said they have received more than 20 calls in the last week from people enquiring where the law lies if employees fail to turn into work as a result of the bad weather.

With treacherous conditions forecasted to continue, and economists predicting the bad weather is costing Britain’s economy up to £1 Billion per day, a written policy could ensure fairer conditions for both employers and employees when battling the elements.

Elaine Courtney, managing director of Courtney Consultancy Ltd in Liverpool, said: “There appears to be quite a lot of confusion and worry, in particular with regards to pay and leave entitlement, in circumstances where staff cannot get to work in bad weather.

Whilst most organisations are sympathetic to extreme weather conditions and employees make every effort to get into work, there are a minority who may manipulate the opportunity to avoid paying a days’ wages or to have an additional day off.

Taking the time to devise a winter weather policy with a HR professional setting out the obligations on both sides is an effective way of eliminating this cold-weather confusion, and could also offset the risk of disciplinary or tribunal scenarios further down the line.”

Courtney Consultancy Ltd has devised some useful pointers for employers to consider when creating a winter weather policy:

• Inform staff of your intentions to create a winter weather policy and explain the benefits for everyone of having this in place.
• Launch a consultation period and encourage employee engagement.
• Be sure to reference clauses written into employment contracts, handbooks and other company literature so as not to create conflicting instructions.
• Consider the implications of applying inflexible terms to staff morale.
• Check the contents of the policy regularly in line with changing employment law.
• The information provided by Courtney Consultancy should be used for general information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.

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