The weather threatens chaos every year – as an employer you need to be aware of your staff safety and the extra pressure bad weather brings! If you need your staff to be in their place of work as the business can’t function without them, you need to do all you can to reduce the risk of the no shows. Its not just the actual cold that will put people off venturing out. The schools shut at the first opportunity, public transport is disrupted, driving is treacherous, and staff are distracted with thoughts of being ‘stuck’ at work after hours.

Encourage communication – from the first moment a little snowflake is on the long range forecast, have a chat with your employees and find out their concerns for the cold, the snow and the ice.

The advice that is publicised via the media for employees is vague about what their employer can insist upon – the only way for it to be clear is a well written contract and a company policy that covers these short lived but important events. 

Have a clear company policy that covers:

• the phoning in procedure
• the information on what absences are paid /unpaid
• the options for homeworking

Keeping communication open will be vital for understanding the extra pressure that bad weather will bring to your staff, if they are also clear on what you expect from them then you can work together to ensure that business continues. If you know who has children, who uses public transport, who cares for elderly relatives etc then you will be able to see why some staff may make the decision to not attend work.

Using paid holiday might be an option for some, but others may be ‘saving’ holiday for a specific break so won’t have the capacity to do so, but what message will the unpaid day give to a reliable employee who might be a single parent and the school shuts?

The most important thing to bear in mind throughout all this is undoubtedly your staff morale. If you don’t consider them, both collectively or as individuals, the employee/ employer relationship could be damaged beyond repair. Be a considerate employer and be seen to be making decisions that are for the benefit of your employees and their safety.

In the UK the bad weather never lasts long, and we will be complaining that its too warm soon enough!