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Original poster

To think 'snow days' are pathetic

326 replies

Toddlerteaplease · 01/02/2019 10:05

I understand if you live very rurally and genuinely can't get out. But snow in cities is rarely that bad. NHS staff don't take days off for a bit of snow. Last time we had severe snow. Not one person on my entire unit missed work. Even though schools were closed.

OP posts:
jessebuni · 02/02/2019 17:49

I think it depends on the location so much though. Our kids school was open and it was fine. There was about 6cm the kids had snow fights with their friends and thought it was great. The school did however close early because some people had to travel home so when the snow started again they messaged parents saying please collect your children as soon as you can. That way about half of the kids were collected early meaning the staff they had to travel a longer distance could leave before it was dark and slippery and snowing.

However only 11 miles down the road my husband got stuck in his car overnight on his way home from work because of multiple jackknifed lorries closing the roads and spun out cars everywhere. They had more than twice as much snow as we did and it feel within an hour or so. So yes snow days CAN be pathetic but also there’s sometimes logic in the better safe than sorry.

WorraLiberty · 02/02/2019 17:51

NHS staff don't take days off for a bit of snow

How can you possibly know this?

Assuming you haven't met them all? Confused

Ihatemyseleffordoingthis · 02/02/2019 17:52

I love snow days.

But I am lucky enough to be self-employed and have designed the way I work to deal with the unpredictability of having loads of children.

user1482956724 · 02/02/2019 17:54

It's also pre emptive action. If snow is still forecast then it's better to close the school before people arrive than risk them being stuck there unable to get home.

A colleague working in a different office to mine drove to work yesterday, no problems. More snow was forecast in the late afternoon so the business opted to close all our offices at 3.30. Colleague left for what should have been a 10 minute drive. He finally abandoned his car a short distance from the office after slowly trying to plod through. He finally got home at 8pm after walking most of the way.

So just because it isn't that bad at 8am, doesn't mean it will still not be bad at 3pm.

Jimdandy · 02/02/2019 17:55

Schools shut for any excuse because the teachers are lazy and think they’re hard done by.

tinytemper66 · 02/02/2019 17:56

Yes Jim I am a lazy fucker and do naff all for my wages!

Tensixtysix · 02/02/2019 17:57

The only pathetic thing about yesterday were the local yobs of the estate making a huge 'cock and balls' out of snow at the entrance to the estate.
Theirs must be miniscule...

Gth1234 · 02/02/2019 17:59

Snowflakes today. That's all. Anything for a day off.

winniestone37 · 02/02/2019 18:01

Oh god.

Tensixtysix · 02/02/2019 18:02

Gth1234 well, I hope you're not an employer. You'd be sued if you made your workers come in and they hurt themselves.
Health and safety made us all snowflakes!

Thehop · 02/02/2019 18:03

Schools have to close incase someone slips. Insurance premiums go through the roof of someone claims.

Kahlua4me · 02/02/2019 18:05

I love snow days 😊! It was great having the dc at home and having fun sledging.

I work with dh and we employ a few staff. Dh and one other went to work yesterday as had an important planned job on. We gave the others the day off to enjoy the snow. There was an amber alert in are area so best to stay off the roads and make it easier for emergency services to get around.

NHS workers don’t always work whatever the weather. The hospisital I trained at often had lots of staff unable to get in on the first day or so of snow due to no buses, icy roads etc. The staff at students that lived on site then had to run the hospital.

gamerwidow · 02/02/2019 18:05

NHS staff don't take days off for a bit of snow

They do if they're not front line. I won't make my back office staff come in if the journeys going to take them hours and there's a chance the trains will stop running early like they did last year. I have massive respect for those clinical staff who get there no matter what but we don't all have to be heroes.

Liketoshop · 02/02/2019 18:07

I also work for the NHS and if we do not go into work due to the weather, we let down our colleagues, patients and either have to take it as annual leave or absent plus the wrath of management. The schools head teachers who decided against opening on Friday albeit a dusting of snow should be ashamed of themselves. No double they'd be disgusted if they didn't get full NHS care, didn't have midwives in attendance if they turned up in labour or expect A&E in full swing... With kids at home as teachers put their feet up for the day fully paid? No I thought not.

Rainuntilseptember15 · 02/02/2019 18:08

Havent rtft so may have been pointed out x100, but teachers have absolutely no say in whether a school shuts for snow. So there is zero point in blaming them or questioning their motives (but it's a day ending in a y so why not!)

gamerwidow · 02/02/2019 18:10

Liketoshop I suspect that teachers don't get a free day off but also get it taken out of their leave entitlement or as unpaid leave the same as NHS staff or indeed pretty much every one who has a 'snow day'.

WorraLiberty · 02/02/2019 18:10

The only pathetic thing about yesterday were the local yobs of the estate making a huge 'cock and balls' out of snow at the entrance to the estate.

That's not pathetic. That's hilarious Grin Grin

Liketoshop · 02/02/2019 18:11

gamerwidow
I'm no hero but midwives and nurses have no choice. It's the same health service and same rule applies regardless. Hopefully you insist on your team making up their time in line with NHS policy?

gamerwidow · 02/02/2019 18:14

Yerroblemom1923 what would these parents do though if their children were ill?
I work and I do understand it's very hard to juggle children and work but you need to have an adult who can get to the school in less than an hour in a emergency.

gamerwidow · 02/02/2019 18:16

Liketoshop they take it as annual leave or unpaid leave.

Sara107 · 02/02/2019 18:20

I think the schools are in a tricky position tbh. If they don’t cancel in time staff or students may have started out only to arrive and find school closed (how pissed off would those parents be!). Weather conditions can be really variable over quite short distances, and it seems to me the weather forecast is often far worse than the actual weather- where we are anyway. So the head teacher living 40 miles away might get up at 5am to monitor the situation only to see a whiteout on their street and a terrible forecast. So they decide the school should be closed, but in the area around the school, by the time 8.30 comes around there’s barely a flake and the roads are all clear. As for NHS staff always getting to work I don’t think this is true. Ilocally in bad weather people with 4 wheel drives and the retained fire crew volunteer to take nurses from the villages into the hospital because most of them couldn’t get in otherwise.

Wineallthetime · 02/02/2019 18:21

@liketoshop
Teachers “put their feet up all day”
Seriously!?! The last snow day I had (before my children) I worked from home, marked 30 odd books, wrote a scheme of work and yes had a nap as I typically work 60 hours a week.

Teachers are under paid, over worked (like lots of people are in other jobs) and quitting in their droves. And you begrudge those that chose to have a rest for the day or enjoy the snow (which most I know did not and used it to catch up on on work).

People need to realise that lots of jobs are stressful, under paid and all consuming, it’s not some kind of competition, but I’m sorry, nobody’s life is on the line if I don’t make it to school.

My mum walked to work in A&E and if I had her job I’d have done the same as lives are at stake. However nobody’s going to die if I don’t teach Romeo and Juliet for the day. Except for perhaps me trying to drive in dangerous conditions of course but as long as I’m coming to teach your children it’s worth leaving mine without a mother right?!!!

LynetteScavo · 02/02/2019 18:21

Last year my DCs school opened, but the bus companies refused to send out their buses. As most children arrive by bus, the school decided to close. The caretakers had worked really hard to clear the paths!

Also, lots of the staff couldn't get in...if there aren't enough staff the school can't run. I struggle to get out of my road when it's icy.

BlueJava · 02/02/2019 18:26

Who cares - we had a snow day and we all loved it!!! Grin

SureIusedtobetaller · 02/02/2019 18:29

We opened. Parents moaned at us that it wasn’t safe. Can’t win.
If we close all the staff who live near enough have to go and shovel snow so it’s hardly a fun day off.
Closing involves the head and site manager struggling in very early and trudging round doing a risk assessment. Also not fun. Then all the local heads wait for other heads to close because they hate closing.
One of our staff had an accident on the way in yesterday because of the weather.
So sick of moaning parents. We can do no right.

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