The snow is an excuse to

[Hungry Joe]

What?

I'll try and summarise:

All UK employers have a legal duty of care towards their employees that extends to ensuring, as far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare of those in their employment, and those who may be affected by their employment (visitors, members of the public etc). This extends not only to the place and time at work, but also to their employees journey to and from work, including access and egress to their place of work. If an employer, after taking into account their individual employee's circumstances, decides that it is unsafe to keep their employee at work, or to do so would mean their journey home would be unduly hazardous, then they have a legal and moral duty to send their employee(s) home. This may mean they have to also close the business entirely. This decision will usually be made on consensus of senior management having taken into account advice from safety specialists and human resources, and is often dictated by company policy which protects the interests of both the business and its employees.

 

[JCL666]

Care to expand, what is he missing? Employees are paid to do a job, who will do it if they go home early? I'm betting they also expect not to lose wages as a result of them going early either.
What's you situation?

A modicum of understanding for someone else's situation?

"Employees are paid to do a job"... AND employers have a duty of care. Why on earth shouldn't employees leave work early to ensure that they can get home in a reasonable time? ESPECIALLY when these sort of weather conditions are incredibly rare.

My situation? WTF are you on about?

 

[JCL666]

Even if I don't bank with Nat West?

Yes you can transfer money between banks online.

Usually it will be in the other persons account within a couple of hours. Most of the transfers I do online result in the money being transferred pretty much instantly.

 

[JCL666]

Good heavens. How did people cope when we had 'real' snow? Safety should always be a priority of course, but far too many people make far too many excuses and pin the responsibility on mother nature ( ie rail services )

What's this stuff that's been falling from the sky today.....FAKE snow?

 

[BensGrandad]

All seems part of the new mamby pamby state that we have got ourselves into unfortunately. I now realize that I could have done the transaction on line even though I don't bank with Nat West in the same way as I pay a normal bill but it doesn't detract from the fact that I believe that it is wrong to close a business early because the staff my take a little longer to get home. This attitude is helping to bring this country down

 

[Hungry Joe]

All seems part of the new mamby pamby state that we have got ourselves into unfortunately. I now realize that I could have done the transaction on line even though I don't bank with Nat West in the same way as I pay a normal bill but it doesn't detract from the fact that I believe that it is wrong to close a business early because the staff my take a little longer to get home. This attitude is helping to bring this country down

It's got nothing to do with taking 'a little longer', it's about whether they can make it home safe and sound and in one piece at all. It's nothing new either - these laws have been in existence in their current form since 1975, and in a very similar form since the early 1960s. The principle of duty of care dates back even further. Grow up for fucks sake.

 

[Frutos]

This attitude is helping to bring this country down

What is bringing this country down is that it is increasingly populated by miserable whinging sods who want everything to be just like it was in 1937 and complain ceaselessly about any and every little thing.

 

[martyn20]

With online and telephone banking the high street branches now have far less staff than they used to, just enough to make them work so if a couple of people live far away and another couple have to pick up their kids from closed schools they will be unable to offer a service.

 

[User removed 4]

Perhaps staff would prefer to get home safely. I expect not all the staff live in Haywards Heath?

Jesus f***ing wept, its snowed a bit , get over it, thats the long and the short of it, I came home from London expecting haywards heath to resemble a scene from the siege of leningrad , the whole area has come to a virtual standstill because of a bit of snow, its ridiculous , we have TALKED ourselves into this situation.

 

[junior]

Sorry, i find the way this country deals with a few inches of snow quite pathetic really.

 

[Hungry Joe]

Sorry, i find the way this country deals with a few inches of snow quite pathetic really.

If we lived in a country where we got a lot of this kind of whether regularly we'd spend billions on severe weather infrastructure. Do you want us to further cripple our failing economy for a few days snow a year? This is NOTHING NEW. Countries such us ours who get the odd bit of adverse whether now and again always have these problems, preciseley because we don't have the infrastructure to deal with it that those countries who get it year in year out do. What do you suggest we do?

 

[Northstandite]

Talk to neighbours, have fun with your kids, and be less obsessive about making further profits.

 

[Northstandite]

If we lived in a country where we got a lot of this kind of whether regularly we'd spend billions on severe weather infrastructure. Do you want us to further cripple our failing economy for a few days snow a year? This is NOTHING NEW. Countries such us ours who get the odd bit of adverse whether now and again always have these problems, preciseley because we don't have the infrastructure to deal with it that those countries who get it year in year out do. What do you suggest we do?

This.

Next to no snow in Southern England from 1992 to 2008, but the perpetual whingers about this "damn country" want us to spend and add to public sector debt by investing in snow clearing infrastructure as if we are Finland or Austria.

The odd snowy day or two has little impact on most, and those caught out driving ignored the clear advice of the police, rac and aa. Hard luck ... listen next time!

 

[Hyperion]

Shut the banks early as I went to Nat West in Haywards Heath and they were shut with a notice that it was due to the bad weather it closed at 2pm why? Was it snowing inside the bank and stopped the computers working? I can never understand how people or businesses can use the weather as an excuse to close early.

Why? Because you do not think before you post probably

 

[The Birdman]

Surely if a business advertises that they are open until 5.00pm they should be open until 5.00pm irrespective of outside influences like weather.

I bet Wetherspoons don't close

 

[Hungry Joe]

I bet Wetherspoons don't close

 

[Lady Whistledown]

While it doesn't take much these days for a high street bank to reduce their hours, nonetheless, BG, you've had an entire week of working days to get there, and you chose- you chose!- to go on the one day on which the snow, which has been widely forecast and warnings broadcast on just about every media channel possible, arrived.

I await you telling us that you skidded your car on an untreated road and that somehow this constitutes further evidence of Broken Britain.

 

[CorgiRegisteredFriend]

I bet Wetherspoons don't close

Quite the opposite- they extend their opening hours

 

[Hungry Joe]

While it doesn't take much these days for a high street bank to reduce their hours, nonetheless, BG, you've had an entire week of working days to get there, and you chose- you chose!- to go on the one day on which the snow, which has been widely forecast and warnings broadcast on just about every media channel possible, arrived.

I await you telling us that you skidded your car on an untreated road and that somehow this constitutes further evidence of Broken Britain.

 

[Tummy Burger]

Well I happen to agree with the OP. it gets on my tits that i am fully expected to get from HH to gatwick. Whilst people in Crawley seem to not be able to manage to get there. Same every time it snows. We now even have a snow policy in the company I work for. Basically I am expected to get there , even for a night shift. If I don't then I have to book leave.

Last time they basically forced me to get there, and hen I did 95 percent of the company had not made it to work whilst they all live far nearer. Something is wrong somewhere. Rant over.