Leave for the bad weather

[Keef]

I came in this morning to find the following memo

Staff absence due to adverse weather conditions / travel difficulties

Managers are reminded that those employees who are unable to attend work will be required to take annual leave or flexi leave. The only exceptions are disabled employees who may be granted up to 2 days special leave or where an employee is a primary carer of a child where the school has closed can be granted up to 2 days compassionate leave. Employees who attended work but have received approval for late arrivals/early departures should be recorded as a standard day without loss of pay or recording leave.

In my opinion, completely out of order for Monday, when there simply was no way to make it in! I shall be playing the disabled staff card (may as well get some good out of it), but think it is so bad for those who couldn't get in, just because they didn't happen to have a kid or a disability.

So, what do others think, has your work place been generous or tight?

[giggirl]

This is bang out of order Keef. There was just no way to get anywhere from ED on Monday. Having said that, personally, if my employer asked me to work some extra hours to make up for Monday then I would do it. That's just give and take. But there's no way I would give up a day's holiday!

[ratty]

I understand Southwark Council are doing the same

[Applespider]

My office sent an email at 6.30 on Monday morning to Blackberries telling managers to get in touch with their staff and tell them not to struggle in against all odds and do what they could from home - luckily it's performance review time so everyone could claim to be considering their past performance and setting next year's goals for some of the time.

A similar mail went out yesterday also allowing people to go early if needed. Everyone is back today though and most are working through lunch etc to make up work etc

It is give and take - companies which act like jobsworths in every instance tend not to have the loyalty or morale of those which treat their employees like adults.

[Nero]

My firm has been great. Some people literally battled their way in through the blizzarding snow - one walked 7 miles, starting at 7 am. Most made an effort, even if it was eventually thwarted. A car pool was set up and (cheap) rooms were booked for staff who finished late or started early. I was allowed a taxi back home (which I shared with the snow-battling colleague). The bosses were appreciative, thanking us for our efforts.

[Keef]

As you say GG, making up some hours is fair, and to be fair to my employers, they do offer the option of flexi-leave, but it just seems so tight of them, when it was just impossible to get in to the office.

Thing that annoys me is that I would have actually called in sick (genuinely this time, not a sicky), and was off sick yesterday, but didn't on Monday because it didn't seem worth it at the time.

Not to worry, for once my dodgy eyes can do me a favour, and I shall claim my "special" leave... (does calling it "specis" seem to be taking the p!ss out of the disabled a bit?) ;-)

[Jah Lush]

I was off on Monday anyway so I'm a bit gutted I didn't get an extra day off because of the adverse weather and travel conditions like everyone else. I think your firm is bang out of order. I'd have found it nigh on impossible to have got in if I'd been due in.

[bigbadwolf]

We've closed the site until all the ice has melted. But we were open yesterday.

[TillieTrotter]

Absolutely outrageous Keef. I hope the employees kick up a real fuss about it.

[Ted Max]

Keef - go to your HR director's computer. Log on to EDF. See if you find the following. username: Louisa.

[bigbadwolf]

No, she works with me. I've assigned to a demo team and she's smashing up concrete fast than the excavator. You should see the determination on her face, especially when she heard most of the lads have bunked off to build snowmen.......muttered something about the economy. 'TEAS UP LOUISA,.........O.K carry on'.

[Keef]

Just spoke to Mrs Keef, and her place of work are talking about doing the same... She will be especially annoyed as they are not paying for her maternity leave, so this will effectively be taking a day of that away from her.

Grrr!!!

Makes me feel pleased that over that last 6 years I've probably pinched a good 2 years worth of hours off of my employers!

[giggirl]

Why don't you nick some paper clips and leave all the lights on - that should cheer you up. Tell Mrs Keef to do the same.

[bigbadwolf]

giggirl Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Why don't you nick some paper clips and leave all

> the lights on - that should cheer you up. Tell

> Mrs Keef to do the same.

It's all about toilet roll and light bulbs.

[Mikecg]

Go sick on major project delivery deadline day, leave the lights on and hide all of the staple guns. but not necessarily in that order.

[katietatie]

Is that the delightful Greenwich council Keef? As school staff we were reminded that 'If staff cannot attend their usual place of work they should contact their local school to see whether they can assist staff there."

Brilliant. Needless to say, noone did.

[SeanMacGabhann]

I think it's dead tight of the employers to do anything like this

And I think people not in essential jobs were basically right to take Monday off

BUT

we may be getting some insight into why councils have a bad name viz: efficiency

My global corporation were no better tho - a staff that would make a skeleton look well-fed turned up. Even on the Tuesday

On a related note, if anyone living in Dulwich (say north of the Harvester) works in the city, most of the west end or Docklands, saying it's IMPOSSIBLE to get to work... well that isn't really true is it? A pain in the arse, a hefty walk, yes.. impossible? nah

[Mick Mac]

Sean - I think a 1 1/2 hour walk each way (3 hours) is pretty much impossible. Its perhaps a sign of the current job uncertainty that so many people actually considered this.

Fortunatly my employer also sent an email to blackberrys early Monday saying no need to "take risks to come in, to work from home (or play with the kids in the snow)" which I thought was understanding although very unusual for them.

[SeanMacGabhann]

really? 90 minutes each way impossible? that sounds a bit soft to me. and it's 90 minutes in the snow.. it's still only 4 miles or so. People walk a lot more than that every day just to get some water in some parts of the wold

sorry.. am I sounding like Louisa? It's just there is a difference between saying "it's snowing so much the traffic has stopped and we are better off messing around for the day" and saying "there is no way in the world I could walk 4 miles in 6 inches of snow"

[Mick Mac]

Pretty much impossible/at very least unreasonable.

[annaj]

Couldn't agree more Sean, and not just because MickMac has labelled be a "dogooder" elsewhere.

If people were happy to have the excuse to take a day off from a desk job, or couldn't get childcare for children with no school or nursery, fair enough. But claiming it's "impossible" to walk 4 miles, unless you have mobility problems, is nonsense.

[annaj]

Oh and ps. Keef, my trust is saying the same thing, but for us it's kind of reasonable since we're an emergency service and had to stay open and the workload of people who didn't come in had to be covered by those who did.

[Peckhamgatecrasher]

Agree it's rather wussy. My daughter has walked from her school in Westminster to home before (4.8 miles) when buses have been up the spout. Admittedly not in snow, but it's not an insurmountable distance for a healthy adult.

[Horsebox]

On Sunday night / Monday morning my dad and a few of my friends, having failed to secure post Sup*rB*wl taxis, walked back to Addiscombe, South Croydon and Earlsfield*.

They'd had a fair few and did liberate a small bottle of Jack Daniels from my drinks cabinet for the journey but nonetheless, they made it back home within 3 hours, up hill and down dale, in the snow.

They did it for the economy.

*Haven't heard back from this guy since but as his wife hasn't come calling I assume he made it back in one piece.

[Mick Mac]

So how far did you walk Annaj?