Page 3 | what do you do if you cannot get into work due to the weather?

Marshtit · 2026-01-06T19:32:00+00:00

obviously you cannot work from home do you make up time do you come in early do you take leave i offered to work from home in the evening but was told No. my newish micromanager, micromanages and is quite tough

Zanatdy · 07/01/2026 06:57

Sounds like you could get to work, just not your chosen method. I think most employers would expect you to use public transport. Or you can ask to use AL or unpaid.

LilyLemonade · 07/01/2026 06:58

WeMeetInFairIthilien · 06/01/2026 19:49

According to the MAT wide email, that was sent 30 mins before we broke up for Christmas, we should book into a hotel close to school, if poor weather is forecast overnight.

Forgetting 1. That costs more that my days pay, and 2. Some of us have young children, who also have to go to their school, back near home.

Apparently, this is on us, as we chose to not live and work in the same town.

We had once where the school opened in a snow weather warning. One student slipped and broke his elbow. Another time, we battled in (over an hour for a 20 min trip, only to have so few students arrive, we were all sent home by 10am.

Can't win, really.

That is just ridiculous!

pinkblueyelloworange · 07/01/2026 06:58

I live in the middle of no where and high up. If someone wants to come and get me and drop me home then that’s fine. However, if I can’t get in I’ll try ask for annual leave, or if I can make up hours by working another day, or just go unpaid. I’ll see what the boss says.

WeMeetInFairIthilien · 07/01/2026 07:29

Empress13 · 07/01/2026 06:30

Bloomin eck ! What sort of work do you do? Check into an hotel at your own expense!

Show quote history

I'm a science teacher...

Jellycatspyjamas · 07/01/2026 07:55

KuanKaKu · 07/01/2026 06:41

Surely it’s all about pre-planning? This happens every winter, it’s nothing new! Where are your grit boxes? Are they full? Make sure your drive / road is gritted, drive to the conditions - slow down, use low gears, make sure you have a blanket and food/drink with you. It’s less than 5cm of snow! It’s manageable to carry on as usual in with adequate preparation and a bit of extra care! Get some snow boots and a decent coat sorted too, it’ll happen again! How do people think countries like Canada keep going?

Not everyone lives in the same place. I’ve not had any snow so far this year, but when it does snow it’s almost impossible to get around. Public transport doesn’t come near and getting the car off the driveway, never mind the actual roads are absolutely treacherous. It’s not 5cm of snow, it’s usually quite a lot more.

PhantomOfAllKnowledge · 07/01/2026 08:05

I remember an incident at work where someone couldn't get in due to dangerous snow and ice on the roads to they lived, a rural village about 20 mins drive out of town. This was long before WFH was widely available. A manager, clearly thinking this was just an excuse for a day off, said he would go and pick the person up. Halfway there, his car skidded off the road due to the snow and ice, and crashed into a stone wall. Fortunately no one was injured.

Inthefuturenow · 07/01/2026 08:17

If public transport is running then you can get to work.
I remember during the beast from the east, there was no public transport running and my then boss asked if I could perhaps walk to work. 3.5 miles in knee deep snow. Oh how I laughed 🤣

LighthouseLED · 07/01/2026 09:02

Inthefuturenow · 07/01/2026 08:17

If public transport is running then you can get to work.
I remember during the beast from the east, there was no public transport running and my then boss asked if I could perhaps walk to work. 3.5 miles in knee deep snow. Oh how I laughed 🤣

That assumes public transport comes anywhere near where you live.

If I can’t get out of my road, I can’t get to any public transport.

TappyGilmore · 07/01/2026 10:05

I remember once making a good effort to get to work in snow, then turning around after I’d been going an hour and was still nowhere near. My manager wanted me to take the day as annual leave. I wouldn’t have minded taking annual leave and having a day off, but it wasn’t really a day off since I’d put time into travelling. So I argued, and my manager eventually backed down and said he’d pay me.

But in hindsight it probably should have been annual leave! Although it annoyed me that all of the managers could work from home, whereas the rest of us couldn’t.

usedtobeaylis · 10/01/2026 00:08

HighStreetOtter · 07/01/2026 06:49

Maybe the OP lives in Yorkshire or Scotland or somewhere where there’s been more than 5cm of snow? My mil lives in Yorkshire and couldn’t get out of her farm for the last two days. It’s all very well saying drive to the conditions but she lives halfway up a big hill and the small road to the main road is very steep….a car simply won’t get enough traction to get up the hill when it’s snowy.

its all very well saying Canada manages, it does my Dd lives there. It’s been snowing loads and something like -20. But the roads are clear. If you live out in the sticks even the roads will be clear to some extent and people also have winter tyres.

dh has got to work for the last few days but said the roads he has to take haven’t been gritted. So if your route is all on A roads you’re ok as they have been but the minute you need to come off an A road it’s icy and snowy.

The Canada argument drives me mad. Countries which experience frequent and sustained types of weather will of course be better set up to cope with it than countries which may or may not experience a short burst of heavy snow or ice at any time over a period of approximately three months.

The question is really a) can you get to work and b) how much effort should you reasonably have to make when infrastructure isn't functioning properly.

OP I would just take annual leave. I would not be travelling for two hours into the workplace with no idea if I'm going to get stuck there. Employers need to start developing policies to deal with this fairly.

Cantbebotheredwithchores · 10/01/2026 10:17

This kind of thread baffles me. I think it’s because I’m a nurse so I need to get to work so snow….if it’s forecast I get up earlier and travel in.
If public transport is working (which is sounds like it is) you can get to work……
It just sounds as though it’s but your preferred method to travel to work.
where abouts are you OP?

notatinydancer · 10/01/2026 11:37

66babe · 06/01/2026 19:42

You should check the policy for Inclement weather
If it’s absolutely impossible for you to get in .. so not possible to drive , public transport not running , no local 4x4 offering help etc then it’s not reasonable to use up your AL , I’m NHS and would not be asked to have unpaid leave or AL .

I’m NHS , annual leave, unpaid or make it up.

Xmasshoppinghell · 10/01/2026 11:47

KuanKaKu · 07/01/2026 06:41

Surely it’s all about pre-planning? This happens every winter, it’s nothing new! Where are your grit boxes? Are they full? Make sure your drive / road is gritted, drive to the conditions - slow down, use low gears, make sure you have a blanket and food/drink with you. It’s less than 5cm of snow! It’s manageable to carry on as usual in with adequate preparation and a bit of extra care! Get some snow boots and a decent coat sorted too, it’ll happen again! How do people think countries like Canada keep going?

Surely you use higher gears in snow/ice. Thats what I was always taught. So less wheels spinning.

selffellatingouroborosofhate · 10/01/2026 18:50

Xmasshoppinghell · 10/01/2026 11:47

Surely you use higher gears in snow/ice. Thats what I was always taught. So less wheels spinning.

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Higher gears has never worked for me. If I'm fast enough for second gear, I'm too fast for ice and snow. The wheels will spin in second gear if they spin in first.

I keep in my car a shovel that dismantles into pieces, a trowel for chipping at hard ice, salt grit, and two inexpensive rugs that are about twice the size of a door mat. If my wheels spin when I try to pull away, I use the rugs under the front wheels to get traction and walk back for them after stopping on a better-gritted patch of road.

Original poster

Marshtit · 10/01/2026 19:23

Cantbebotheredwithchores · 10/01/2026 10:17

This kind of thread baffles me. I think it’s because I’m a nurse so I need to get to work so snow….if it’s forecast I get up earlier and travel in.
If public transport is working (which is sounds like it is) you can get to work……
It just sounds as though it’s but your preferred method to travel to work.
where abouts are you OP?

yes but it was a crazy long journey, normally taken by car and i have had hairy journeys in the snow only a couple of times now, coming home from work, but not forgotten and always dreaded.

OP posts: