By Sharon Hundal
Borneo Martell Turner Coulston
THE snowfall at the beginning of March led to our firm receiving a number of enquiries from employers wishing to know how they could deal with employees who did not make it into work. Employers reported reasons for non-attendance which ranged from cars not starting, not being able to get cars off the drive to being afraid to drive in the snow. There was also the issue of school closures which meant that some parents needed to stay at home with their children.
While the reasons were valid, the effect of non-attendance on some employers, particularly small businesses was significant. The general position is that an employee is not entitled to be paid if they have not been able to get into the workplace in these circumstances. This is subject to any contractual rights and workplace policy which may apply.
However, if the employer provides transport and the employee is otherwise ready, willing and able to work, the employee is entitled to be paid. The same is true if the employer decides to close their offices due to weather conditions or say because there is no water or heating. An employer is unable to force the employee to take such absence as annual leave unless the employee agrees for this to be the case or unless advance notice was given by the employer. This may be covered by the employment contract and/or workplace policy.
Where there is an emergency situation such as school closure, an employee is entitled to take time off to deal with that emergency, but the employee is not entitled to be paid. It should be noted that the emergency is deemed to be the time required to make alternative childcare arrangements and not necessarily the time to look after the children themselves. Again, the employment contract or workplace policy can alter the position and require the employer to pay the employee in these circumstances.
This issue is not confined to situations when employees cannot work due to snow. What duties does an employer have if the workplace gets too hot or too cold? Do employees have to work and what obligations do employers have in those situations?
Temperatures in the indoor workplace are covered by the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992, which place a legal obligation on employers to provide a reasonable temperature in the workplace. The Approved Code of Practice suggests that the minimum temperature in a workplace should normally be at least 16 degrees Celsius. Therefore, if the temperature falls too low or gets unreasonably high in the workplace, then an employer may have to send employees home but would still be under an obligation to pay them.
These sorts of issues may seem very minor but in practice, they can cause disruption to your business. If you would like to safeguard against issues like this affecting your business, it is recommended that your workplace contracts and policies are reviewed periodically. For an initial free discussion contact Sharon Hundal at Borneo Martell Turner Coulston on 01604 622101.
