Snow Days of Winter

[RetailActress]

Here in New England, we've had quite a challenging winter so far.

About a half-dozen times since mid-December, we've had to close our store earlier than our stated times because of bad weather.

Yes, the hourly workers lose time .... but I sense this is not a huge problem, considering the anxiety of negotiating the bad road conditions, only to arrive in a situation where there are NO CUSTOMERS + NOTHING TO DO = INTENSE BOREDOM.

Yep, it can easily escalate into MADDENING PANIC!

Is this what midwinter is like at YOUR workplace?

R.A.

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

Pretty much.

My store actually did close 4 hours early a couple years ago due to a bad snowstorm. Otherwise nothing short of the impending end of the world will shut the place down.

[Eric the Grey]

Is this what midwinter is like at YOUR workplace?

R.A.

Not quite. Over the past couple years, we've had blizzards bad enough to close down the city, and at times like that, the poor schmuck who's currently on duty, gets stuck here until someone else can make it in.

The last time, it was my boss who stayed and sent everyone home. Actually, I think he did the same the previous time as well. Luckily, there is a cafeteria in the building and security has the keys, so at times like that, they can get food to make it through, and even get a shower in the locker room (we have a small weight & aerobics area complete with changing/shower rooms) if they want. I know Rob stayed here almost 36 hours last winter before someone made it in to relieve him.

He was working on a plan to allow us to do almost everything from home in case of emergencies like that, but it never went through, and he's left the company now...


Eric the Grey

[AngryCas]

For the five years that the store I work for has been open, not ONCE has it closed early. Twice, I have had to walk to work because I couldn't get my car out of the lot. Thankfully, it's only about 2 miles away.

In fact, the closest I have even come to being sent home early was on Christmas Eve. I got sent home ten whole minutes before my shift ended.

Whoop-dee-fucking-doo.

[Peppergirl]

We have to stay because we're an emergency call center. Thankfully, some people have phones at home and can pick up the slack if emps choose to go home, without pay of course.

I don't have a home phone line, so I can't have a desk phone at home and they won't pay for it, so I guess I'll trudge through the snow to work tomorrow.

[Finduilas]

I was so happy when the library called me today to tell me that they're closed, so I don't have to slog my bicycle through the snow and slush and bad Massachusetts drivers to put away books.

Of course, I planned to get up early and get stuff done since they woke me up. I then promptly locket myself out of the room for two hours.

Sigh.

[Soulstealer]

You have snow days? My work hasn't closed early since the winter of '86. I even added hours to my pay check since people were calling in sick.

The problem is we're a large building with lots of locations to hide in and some homeless people seem to try and stay the night.

[South Texan]

Thank you all! You made me appreciate where I live all the more.

It was around 80 degrees here today, my kids were off from school so they were outside in shorts playing, and I had all my windows open to enjoy the breeze. Tomorrow I have to mow the lawn.

[Listerfiend]

The ass-hats at corporate don't ever let our store close.

Last winter there was a day that it was a white-out and the entire strip mall my store's in closed except for the grocery store by 5:00pm. Most other establishments in the area closed as well, including the mall that's nearby (huge place). There's another location of my store about 5 miles away from where we are, and both locations called district manager, etc. to see if we could close but we weren't allowed. I heard that the DM said most of our stores in the region wanted to close up but we had to stay open just because of what someone at corporate in TEXAS said. Because, you know, people HAVE to be able to get their craft items in any weather condition.
Wanna know how many customers we had from 6:00-9:00? 3.
3 freaking customers. Four employees were at my store that night, one of which who lives about 30 miles away from the store in an area that recieves more snow than the store's area. And we were kept because of a jerk in Texas.

We've also had massive power outages and we're not even allowed to shoo customers out of the store to insure our safety, etc. much less close it.

(I know I'm bitter)

[Anriana]

Our official policy is that all employees are expected to be at work on time and work a full shift, regardless of weather. Unofficially, management is pretty understanding about writing off black marks if you're late or can't come due to weather, but they still expect you to at least try.

A few weeks ago after the wind storm hit the US, the major road I take to work was covered in trees/street signs/billboards/random debris and the power was out so there were no working lights. I came to work twenty minutes late, it was written off, and then we spent several hours of our shift cowering in the storm basement. Crazy.

[ArenaBoy]

Canceling events at an arena because of winter? In Michigan? HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!! They'd still insist on holding the event if there was a projection of 10 feet of snow. Spreading salt in a blizzard is not my idea of fun and if I saw that there was a call for snow in the long range forecasts I didn't sign up for the event.

[Boozy]

Several weeks ago our stores (the entire chain) were counting inventory on the scheduled day. That day our area was hit with the worst storm of the year.

Head office, an absolutely necessary component of the inventory counting process, closed for the day.

They made all 50 stores stay open and count inventory. Which took twice as long for everyone because we had no computer support from H.O.

The people at our corporate office are dicks.

[PhotoChick]

Official policy says if you can't make it due to weather they don't hold it against you. Unofficial policy says if the college kids who live in town where they plow can get to work we're gonna bitch and moan if you call you even though you live outside of town where they don't plow and your jeep got stuck in the snow.

[Xieg]

Ah, winters in New England. Stretches of wooded area covered in a beautiful sheet of ice and snow, and roads that turn the most experienced northern driver into a babbling idiot behind the wheel.

I've worked in a supermarket, bakery, and sub shop. All of these, when hit by a snowstorm, were dead. Most closed early as it was a waste of money to stay open any longer. Sometimes, it got so bad out, we stayed open because we could not go anywhere else.

However, where I work now, the policy is get to work even if it kills you. Not in those words mind you, because I am sure the company would get sued for it. I've had a number of near misses on the way in, and once got smacked by a van. Thankfully, I drive a Crown Vic, labeled by someone on these forums as 2 tons of anger and steel (can't for the life of me remember where I saw/who said that.) I walked away with a dent, the van's nose was all sorts of banged up.

Gotta love New England winters.

[Becks]

Every once in a while my store will close early.

Never opens, late, though, to the best of my knowledge. Maybe because one of the store managers lives a few blocks away?

I work second shift, so I don't have an excuse to be late, unless it's the middle of the storm.