When the Weather Outside is Frightful

Through the years our facility has made changes in an attempt to work with mother nature.  Our security department purchased a 4 wheel drive vehicle and were available to pick up staff within a certain radius from the hospital.  Then the insurance company saw that as a liability.  The hospital then partnered with a local motel to house stranded staff or staff who took extra precautions to insure they could be available for their shift (out of towners etc).  My director evaluates the situation before counting missed days due to weather against someone.  Of course you have those people who will drive 25 miles in horrible weather and the guy who lives a mile or two away that "can't make it in".  We are a pretty close knit group and we know our buddy will be the one taking up the slack if we can't get to work.  

I agree, no job is worth the lives of my children or myself.  I'm betting when the lawyers get ahold of these facilities they'll be singing a different tune.  Isn't is a shame it will have to come to that though?

Just my 2 cents.

If this isn't a perfect display of "gross misconduct" on the part of the corporate administration, I don't know what could be.  They obviously were trying to make an example of these people to send a message to others with no regard to the obvious situation.  This creates a burden on the part of the (innocent) employees that were terminated to become reinstated.

Perhaps the administration should have (and may have) taken  in to account was how/where/how far, etc. many of these people live from the facility as well as road and driving conditions.  

I, personally, would give it a shot of trying to make it into work, but I also know when to call No Joy and either turn back or not go in for MY own safety, so I don't become a casuality.  No job is worth getting hurt/killed for in this manner.  What many fear (especially locally here) is getting stranded in your vehicle and running out of fuel, food and having inadequate warm clothing.

A couple of storms locally in the recent decade stranded drivers during the evening rush hour, preventing them from making it home for over a day or getting kids from school or day care.

The facility may have offered to come and pick up some of these people, but did it offer it to everyone they terminated or communicate how to request a ride to these people?  I bet not.  Secondly when they offer you a ride into work they will not offer or guarantee you a ride back home, potentially binding you at the  workplace indefinately.  Tell that to a single parent.

Not everybody has the ways and means of making it into work during inclement conditions and they should take that into account.  Bus services may be halted.  Worker may be waiting on spouse or reliable child care.  Driving bans may be enacted.  Traffic conditions may create stand stills - making it only worse because now worker(s) are now stranded out there somewhere in gridlock or a ditch, instead of at home where they can be reachable.

I wish these employees the best of luck at their fight to be reinstated and if not - I wish them the best of luck legally.  Fortunately the ones listed in the story have a union to go to bat for them but some employees may not have a 'bigger voice' and may not end up being as fortunate.