Does your work make you "make up" snow days?

[rumples]

I take it that you are not located in an area that has regular snow days. When I was in high school, we had a certain number of days built in to the school year knowing that the school would need to be closed from time to time. If we got close to using them up, the roads to the school, path to the doorways, etc. would be cleared so that the "town kids", most of whom walked to school on a regular basis, could get in and they could call it a regular school day. If we went beyond the designated number of snow days, we had to extend the school year by that same number of days since the school year consisted of a set number of days. Fortunately, it rarely happened.

[Deleted]

My wife does get paid for it, I don't

[Deleted]

OP, I'm probably in the middle of the same winter storm that you're dealing with. We don't get snow often, so my city basically shuts down when it snows.

With my employer, when it snows we can request leave that doesn't affect our personal leave but I've never known it to be approved for employees that don't work in *offices*. We can request vacation time be used so we can be paid, but approval depends on the whim of our managers.

I've already had a carwreck trying to drive in snow and now I'm paranoid about it. I'm staying home whether I get paid or not. I've worked for a company that would provide transportation and hotel rooms if necessary when it snowed. My current employer doesn't care if you live or die; one of my managers has actually said that. So I prefer to increase my chances of living another day by not driving in snow.

We may or may not get paid for not coming in to work when it snows. I guess the only way we could be forced to *make it up* is if we get paid for snow days, then it reduces the days you have available for vacation time.

[cronewitch]

I work on a dock so it is colder than other places. We have one man get up at 4AM and record a message about if we are open. If we are closed only the freeze prevention people are required to work. Office workers are allowed to work if we want to, my boss always shows up, I don't. I call my boss and have him do anything important like transferring money to payroll to cover the direct deposit or uploading the direct deposit if it is due. He will hand write any important checks so I have to clean up after my day off and do most of my work myself. I use a vacation day. Last time the payroll clerk posted payroll just as she was leaving and the other people were leaving then I also left early so he did have to do direct deposit and transferring money. He was going to call the payroll clerk to get to work but I told him she printed checks already so they must be in her safe signed or not signed so he got the checks and gave them out to those that showed up and didn't have direct deposit. She takes the bus and could have come to work but I told her it was a choice if we were closed unless she had a deadline. It was Thanksgiving week so we had payroll on Wednesday so Direct deposit on Tuesday and ended up with a 1 day work week.

[so1970]

never had a snow day and if its snowing this week i still expect my relief to drive11 hrs. to the boat to replace me.

[greeneyedchicka]

Where I work now it is very liberal. If we shut down, we do not have to make up snow days. Even if we don't shut down, and you can't make it in, we still don't have to make them up. As long as our work is caught up on and projects stay on schedule, that is all that matters.

I am in MD, and we are looking at snow tomorrow, so it will be the first time this season to possibly use a day

[Deleted]

Teaching really is different. They close the schools primarily for the kids' benefit. Not only do they worry about transporting them, but many kids drive themselves.

What a waste of a day, though. One of our "snow days" is after graduation. You know my seniors will be there.

[wvugurl26]

If they close the office we aren't charged leave. We got sent home early before Christmas. Didn't get much snow but the roads were really slick underneath the snow.
On my timesheet I bill it to admin time the same thing I bill when they close the office early before holidays.

[8 Bit WWBG]

I work for the Federal Government in the DC area. It takes a LOT to close for a snow day, it has only happened a handful of times in the 8+ years I've worked here. Nevertheless, I do not get charged for, or have to make up the time.

However, with the new push towards telework, I think what is going to happen is that the government will never truly close. It will just be "open under unscheduled leave". So even if you physically cannot get into the office, you will still have to work a full day from home.

I'm not particularly excited about that. I guess its OK if everyone is set up and I can function as normal and still have virtual meetings instead of real ones. But if I'm the lone worker and everyone else takes the day off, I can only get so much done.

[ziyia]

Our company policy is that if the employee decides that they can't make it in, then they have to use a sick/vacation day. If the company closes, then no one is charged any personal time. Of course, when the company had to close due to a major blizzard several years ago (including a level 1 county snow emergency - no non-essential travel allowed), we were 'encouraged' to 'volunteer' a weekend day to make it up.

[Deleted]

Jan 10, 2011 10:17:02 GMT -5 8 Bit WWBG said:

However, with the new push towards telework, I think what is going to happen is that the government will never truly close. It will just be "open under unscheduled leave". So even if you physically cannot get into the office, you will still have to work a full day from home.

Interesting timing; my company just sent out a note that our office in an Atlanta suburb is closed but employees are expected to work from home. I think this is a vast improvement over the Bad Old Days where you dragged yourself in and spent the rest of the day worrying about the drive home.

[wvugurl26]

I think its always going to be agency dependent. In my group you have to be a grade 12 and have been there for a year before you can do telework officially. Unofficially in my office we have the deputy inspector general who is of the old school and doesn't believe in telework so it doesn't happen. I think it does happen in the regional offices but until we have a new deputy, no telework for us.
12's a few years off for me anyway so unless they change that part its not a concern of mine. In theory I could connect through vpn and get on the network. In practice though I wonder how painfully slow it might be getting my information off the server. Sometimes even in my office its horrible.

[Deleted]

I know what you mean about the "old school". My previous employer, which had many permanent teleworkers all over the world, was acquired by a large, Switzerland-based firm. Overall it's a good company but there are a lot of so-called managers who don't trust teleworking. You now need to be with the company a year before you can permanently work from home. That even applied to a highly-qualified colleague with 30 years of experience, who works her rear end off- she had to work in our office for a year and rent an apartment because her husband (who owned an insurance agency) couldn't move. She's now back in Little Rock with her husband- and just as productive.

[The J]

Yeah -- teleworking here is subject to the discretion of our department head. My department head wants bodies in the building, so we don't get to do it.

[michelyn8]

The school systems in VA build "snow days" into their calendar. If unused, they will add extra time off in the Spring. If they have to use more than they've allotted, they take away from the planned closures in the Spring. There have been some years for an extra day or two was added to the end of the school year. And we always go to school into June. Most of the public schools systems don't open before Labor Day (a change from when I was a kid and one I never really cared for).

Where I work if I call out for weather, I have to use either a vacation or sick day. If my employer tells me to stay home, I get paid a weather day. This is new to me because my previous division's supervisor never closed us for weather and I was expected to at least show up and then use personal time if I chose to leave early. However, it wasn't unusual for one of the client managers to tell me to go home early in bad weather and if I was told, I put in to be paid for the whole day.

[wvugurl26]

Audit is one end of our floor and another group is on the other end. They believe in telework. I might find it rather annoying but one of the supervisors down there makes them send her a sheet every day saying I did x, y, and z.
To be fair a lot of what we do is collaborative. I do think it is possible for us to work from home now and then. Like those days when they bring 250 visitors in for some conference or whatever. There already aren't enough parking spots for everyone and we are a good 5 years off or more for the train running near our office.

[michelyn8]

In watching the weather this morning, it looks like there is a good chance this storm will go easy on VA. I would perfectly happy if we got no snow at all. We've already had two storms (week before Christmas and Christmas weekend) and were closed the Monday after Christmas. That's more than enough snow for me but something tells me this is going to be one of those years that VA gets a lot of snow. I prefer the years we get none at all a whole lot more myself. I can do without the cold, wet mess and idiots who crowd the stores to stock up like we're going to get a North Dakota type blizzard instead of the forecasted 1" not to mention the folks in SUV's and 4-wheel drive pickups who think that 4-wheel drive means they can still do 70 on an uncleared road.

[TheOtherMe]

I am retired from the federal government, was located in Denver. If it was announced on tv that the federal government was closed, that didn't include the agency for whom I worked. We were expected to show up for work.

"Also, it's always the same people who can't show up, or show up a couple hours late every time there's a snow storm, and it's not because they couldn't drive in it, it's because they'll use any excuse not to come in. One's an hour late every time it snows because they were stuck in their driveway. Well, you knew it was snowing when you went to bed! Set the alarm for earlier."

Definitely found this to be true. One day, the big boss and I were the only two who made it in. Some of these people lived only a few blocks away and I lived over 30 miles. Office was eventually closed the big boss did give me some comp time because I was the only one who even tried.

I remember plenty of 3 hour commutes when It snowed and that included leaving early.

[pushingit]

Jan 10, 2011 10:01:42 GMT -5 @southernsusana said:

.

What a waste of a day, though. One of our "snow days" is after graduation. You know my seniors will be there.

We sometimes use up our alloted snow days and have to make up a day to get to the number the state and the teacher's contract requires. We have only once had to go longer in June though. We usually make it up by cancelling a day off that's not a holiday, but built into the calendar, like Superintendent's day.

[sidney]

If my work doesn't actually close. I have to use personal time. I live in Wisconsin so it usally only happens once a year that I can't make it to work.

Go Packers!!!!

[Urban Chicago]

Also, it's always the same people who can't show up, or show up a couple hours late every time there's a snow storm, and it's not because they couldn't drive in it, it's because they'll use any excuse not to come in. One's an hour late every time it snows because they were stuck in their driveway.

I hate these people too. To make it even more ridiculous, there are busses and trains that these people could take to our office on bad weather days. I kind of understand if the schools are closed and they have kids and no babysitter, but that's pretty darn rare around here.

[Wisconsin Beth]

I'm a civilian working for the local fire dept. I'm considered essential services so I don't get snow days anymore. If I can't get into work in my own vehicle, supposedly I can contact the closest Battalion Chief and he'll come get me. Since I live about 4 miles from work, it'd have to be a helluva storm for me to do that.

In other City, non school, depts the deal is IF the mayor shuts the city down, we stay home or go home. We're permitted to use any existing comptime or vacation time to cover it. If we don't want/don't have either of this, we can either take the time as unpaid OR make it up in the same week at 1.5 time. So if the mayor shuts us down once we're in and have worked 2 hrs, we'd need work 4 hrs to make it up. I think the VAC/CTU is straight hrs though. It's been a while and I don't recall offhand.

[The J]

Jan 10, 2011 12:09:22 GMT -5 Urban Chicago said:

Also, it's always the same people who can't show up, or show up a couple hours late every time there's a snow storm, and it's not because they couldn't drive in it, it's because they'll use any excuse not to come in. One's an hour late every time it snows because they were stuck in their driveway.

I hate these people too. To make it even more ridiculous, there are busses and trains that these people could take to our office on bad weather days. I kind of understand if the schools are closed and they have kids and no babysitter, but that's pretty darn rare around here.

It does depend on where the person lives. No matter how early I get up, if there's a heavy snowstorm I can't leave until the parking lot has been plowed. My condo's also on a private road, so until that gets plowed, no one is going anywhere. Someone who lives in a HOA development could have the same problem.

[bean29]

I live in WI, major snowstorms are regular occurrences in the winter. Offices are rarely completely closed. Late arrivals and early dismissals are what you are allowed. If you take the day off, you need to use PTO or Vacation time.

As other posters have noted, it is usually the people who commute the most miles who can be depended on to arrive at work. Dependable transportation may factor into that - when you know you are going to spend several hours a day in your vehicle you probably don't want to be broken down on the side of the road especially in bad weather. Hence commuters generally have 4 wheel drive, front wheel drive, traction control etc. to help manage bad road conditions. I also know several people who put snow tires on their cars.

[april47]

I've been retired for 3 months now. I was a nurse and on days that were officially called bad weather days we ended up staying at the hospital and couldn't go home because the next shift may not be able to make it in.
This was more likely flooding or hurricanes but it did happen once during an ice storm. In hurricane season we are assigned "teams" and A was expected there during the storm and B was expected to relieve when the threat was gone or the storm over. We could not evacuate with our families or we could lose our job. We used to be paid the whole time we were there waiting whether we were working or not but that changed to only if we were actually working. Budget cuts. We could use PTO if not working or if on team B and nothing happened or they could just be short day. I sure am glad I retired!!!!!

[Anne_in_VA]

Our office is rarely closed due to weather, but we were closed the Monday after Christmas due to a snowstorm. There is actually a code on our timesheets for "Office Closure". And no, we don't have to make it up.

[8 Bit WWBG]

...:::"Yeah -- teleworking here is subject to the discretion of our department head. My department head wants bodies in the building, so we don't get to do it.":::...

My Dad is like this, but its mostly because he knows he cannot trust the employees. He is also smart to take an "absolute" stance, because as soon as you let one person bend the rules, you have to let everyone.

...:::"It does depend on where the person lives.":::...

Agreed. During the recent snowstorm in NY, my Mom's location had plows running during and after the snowstorm. My grandparents (also a reasonably populated area) didn't get a plow until 3 days after.

...:::"I kind of understand if the schools are closed and they have kids and no babysitter, but that's pretty darn rare around here. ":::...

Here in VA, sometimes it seems like schools close at the mere threat of snow. But I can also understand that if it is going to cause problems getting home, its smarter to just not come in at all than force your way in and then worry about getting home. DF's office had this whole "it doesn't look good for our customers to be closed" nonsense during the February 2010 storms. But getting in was REALLY perilous, and then after 2 hours they sent everyone home anyways. Gee, it doesn't look good for your customers to create so much ill will for your employees either.

Sometimes you get rewarded for stupidity though. I remember one storm where anyone who came in got to leave 4 hours early, but anyone teleworking had to work the full day. I figured it was much safer to be home though than risk a 4+ hour commute. I don't drive, but once metro stops operating, its done. It seems the smart people let everyone else scramble home and clog the roads. Wait a few hours and the roads will be empty.

[Cookies Galore]

Jan 10, 2011 12:26:06 GMT -5 The J said:

Jan 10, 2011 12:09:22 GMT -5 Urban Chicago said:

I hate these people too. To make it even more ridiculous, there are busses and trains that these people could take to our office on bad weather days. I kind of understand if the schools are closed and they have kids and no babysitter, but that's pretty darn rare around here.

It does depend on where the person lives. No matter how early I get up, if there's a heavy snowstorm I can't leave until the parking lot has been plowed. My condo's also on a private road, so until that gets plowed, no one is going anywhere. Someone who lives in a HOA development could have the same problem.

And also depends on the strength of your area's public transit system. I can walk to the train station, but if Septa shuts down then I'm SOL. And Septa does shut down, boy does it shut down. Last winter it had what some referred to as their "one way guarantee"; they can get you to your destination, but good luck on getting home. And then there's the fun of getting stuck on a train for three hours because the tracks are frozen. Whee!

[The J]

And also depends on the strength of your areas public transit system. I can walk to the train station, but if Septa shuts down then I'm SOL. And Septa does shut down, boy does it shut down. Last winter it had what some referred to as their "one way guarantee"; they can get you to your destination, but good luck on getting home. And then there's the fun of getting stuck on a train for three hours because the tracks are frozen. Whee!

This happened with the last snowstorm -- our office was on a delayed opening, and by the time they were going to open, all the trains had shut down. One of my coworkers, who tried going in on the train before the delay was announced, was let off at the stop before the one she needed, because they weren't going to run the trains any further south.

[8 Bit WWBG]

Ah yeah, I saw on the news these two guys who were stuck on the train trying to get to offices in around the same area. One had a laptop and they shared it to get a little basic e-mail done.