Heading to work in red storm warning

[jocktamsonsbairn]

Dd has to work in a well known UK high st sportswear store tomorrow at the height of the storm. We are on the Atlantic coast of Scotland, all schools, council offices and all non essential places are closed. Had a warning to phones saying not to travel, leave roads open for emergency vehicles etc.
Manager has asked head office to close, told no. Only 2 shops in the shopping centre are open this one and one other. Why they F are they making their staff go in when the police /government etc are saying to stay at home. What come back does she have if she says no, it's too dangerous? A tribunal? It's a permanent contract but a temporary job for her. She will need a reference and has always proved herself, never called in sick etc. I've told her not to go in as her life is worth more than selling a pair of trainers to whichever idiot goes shopping g tomorrow. All public transport cancelled so unlikely to be busy.
Any help needed to convince a teenager that sometimes you need to listen to yer mammy??

Please name the shop concerned. I don't want to spend my money there, there is one I intentionally don't go to, it may be another one.

Having worked in head office i read it and thought Sports Direct straight away. If not JD equally as shite. I don’t think the OP has named the business though. Manager wouldn’t have rang head office though would be area or regional manager

They are being ridiculous. They are putting their staff at risk of harm and are unlikely to have any customers.

The FM even made a statement in ScotParl and has been all over news and social media: follow the advice in your area, and do not travel.

Remind DD that she would not only be risking her own life, but also the life of anyone who has to come and try to help her if it all goes wrong.

What is her manager thinking? They should be making the right decision for their staff and their store - it is their job to face down Head Office, not pass the buck to a bunch of teenagers.

She's right. Don't lie.
It's a red warning, that's reason enough.

Of course she shouldn't lie, and you are setting her a bad example by suggesting she does so. I admire her determination to do the right thing and get into work if they ask her to.

As she's old enough to work, she's old enough to make the decision herself. She either explains she's following the government warnings and won't be able to get in, or she gives it a go and sets off. She may get in, or she may find it's impossible, in which case she has at least tried and can say so.
That's what a responsible adult would do.

If she was a nurse, police, emergency services worker she'd be expected to come in despite the weather.

I would simple say the police and fireguard say no so it's a no sorry. Not open for discussion and your mad for opening and risking life.
They won't fire her with a red warning but may have words with HR

Im assuming it's sports direct they treat there staff like shit. I'd call in sick. If one of their staff dies they will soon twist it round and say we never told anyone they had to come but some still chose to. Awful company

But she's not a nurse, dr, police officer or emergency service worker she's a teenager/young adult working a minimum wage part time job. And I'm sure the emergency workers would rather her stay home then them having to risk there lives to save her when something goes wrong

This is really irresponsible, it doesn't take much for a tree to fall on a car and crush you. You're then seriously injured/dead but also a burden on the emergency services. When they say it's red, and you should stay home, then stay home, simple really.

If you're a Dr, then you're helping solve the problems caused by the storm, and probably need to risk getting to work, but the risk/benefit analysis here makes more sense, vs selling trainers.

I admire her determination to do the right thing and get into work if they ask her to.

Ah yes, shareholder profit before personal safety, every time. It's the British Way.

Yes this, ask the store manager to put it in writing 'so your daughter is covered if the police stop her in the road' eg via text or email that they expect staff to come in despite being in a red warning area.

They will soon decide to close then....

I think but check. Under the HASAW Act you can refuse to do anything that is dangerous with exceptions for police, armed forces etc.

Got something https://www.hse.gov.uk/event-safety/incidents-and-emergencies.htm

Ask to see their plan, or get the manager to ask head office, if they do not have one then they are breaking the law.

If she was a nurse, police, emergency services worker she'd be expected to come in despite the weather

She isn’t any of those things though, and young people sometimes need support to argue against ridiculous instructions from employers. It’s good to learn early in your career that your employer doesn’t own you, you have the right to make decisions for your own health and safety and this is one of those times. What’s the point of the weather warning system if people simply ignore safety instruction. Police Scotland have issue a do not travel warning, that should be enough.

Fallen trees are a real risk.
As are high sided vehicles being blown over.

@jocktamsonsbairn Your son feels ''Immortal'' as he's young, but his insurance could well be invalidated.

He's a fool to drive in a red zone.

Edited...Sorry, replied to wrong person.

But she's not one of those workers is she?! No one is going to come to harm from not buying a pair of trainers or from losing a days takings because they've closed. People might well die attempting to facilitate the demand that they provide those things.
It's absolutely ridiculous to demand people go against official advice to not travel in these circumstances, they've not said it for fun, it's because it genuinely poses a risk to life for those travelling and also if there is an accident, those rescuing. When it could be completely avoided.

And the company will be quick to deny all responsibility if something happens and someone is hurt or worse. Are they going to replace her car or arrange for her to be rescued in the event that something does go wrong? No, they're not. Quick to demand but not so quick to take responsibility for it.

It's little more than exploitation really.

Exactly. I roll my eyes so hard when people post stupid comments about covid or food poisoning any time someone needs a reason to not do something that's inadvisable or they don't want to do. No-one believes you and you literally might as well say 'the dog ate my homework'.

The shop's not exactly going to be overrun with customers so I agree it shouldn't open. OP is your DD in touch with her colleagues and have they discussed this? Others might also be unsure what to do and by trying to get to work because they think others are.

But I think the shop manager should take an executive decision to not open citing local advice against non essential travel. However there's obviously the risk that the shit employer that they work for could dismiss them, so they're between a rock and a hard place unfortunately.

I am in the red warning area too - everything is closed round here and I can't believe people would be venturing out to buy trainers.

Large shopping centres like SIlverburn or Braehead appear to be leaving the decision about whether to open to individual stores, the message on their website says "While Silverburn will not close we encourage everyone to stay safe and to follow Police Scotland travel advice".

I really hope you can convince her not to go in. The warning doesn't even start for another 2 hours and it's wild out there.

There are people alive now who won't be by the end of today.
Hide her car keys OP.

If all other shops bar one in the centre are closing - and it's a centre you need to entered to then entered the shop - is the actual centre opening?

If it's a stand alone store I guess that doesn't matter - but they will be opening for what? No ones heading in under a red warning and certainly not if every other shop is shut?

My mum’s best friend died in a car accident in the snow because his employer said if he didn’t turn up, he’d lose his job. Lost his life instead going straight under a lorry. This was years before I was born but obviously it stuck with my mum and a result it was drilled into me from a small child you don’t fuck about in severe weather. I had a bit of a stand-off in my early 20s with an old manager who tried to get me to come in during heavy snow. No one had ever challenged him on it before. In the end I stayed home and the same day he re-wrote the policy to say we had to use a day’s holiday if we couldn’t get in due to snow.

I would strongly assume nothing bad will happen to her and at most she’ll just lose a day’s holiday/pay. Head office are presumably fucked off people are trying to push back so they’re doubling down, but realistically they don’t have much of a leg to stand on.

....or she might be killed by a tree falling on her car.

If she was a nurse, police, emergency services worker then it might be worth her risking her life to get to work. The same can't be said for selling trainers during a dangerous storm.

Getting sacked from Sports Direct for following government warnings (while demonstrating a mature attitude to personal safety) will not harm her CV in the slightest.

I worked with a nurse who decided to walk to work in a blizzard (rural private hospital). A farmer found her unconscious in a field, she very nearly died out there that night.