With wintry conditions set to maintain their grip on the region, a new survey has revealed over half of UK employers do not pay their workers when freak weather prevents them from coming into work.
When severe weather hits, employers can be left counting the cost of lost hours and productivity as employees subsequently fail to get into work.
Croner - a provider of employment advice and support - said that it was not surprising that 52 per cent of employers polled believe that adverse weather is insufficient grounds for additional paid leave.
With occurrences of freak weather on the rise, it is advising that although bosses are well within their rights to cut employees' pay, they should be looking at reasonable ways to help staff continue their work - and get paid.
Richard Smith, employment law expert at Croner, said: "Come rain, hail or shine, all staff have a contract with their employer to show up for work each day.
"Although not a legal requirement, having an adverse-weather policy could help in certain situations to avoid conflict or confusion should an employee be late for work or fail to attend all together."
He added that employers can legally refuse to pay employees for any missed time, but before cutting pay, employers could consider options such as allowing employees to take the time as annual leave, providing home-working solutions or allowing them to make up the time lost. "With the prevalence of laptops and email, it's now much easier to enable employees, particularly those at managerial level, to continue to perform their duties without having to be onsite.
"They could also consider the benefits of paid leave as a goodwill gesture to employees, which can help boost morale, motivation and loyalty."
Forty- eight percent of employers Croner surveyed are already doing this and Mr Smith said they should be making staff aware of this extra perk.
But he advised they also need to adopt a common-sense approach to weather-related absence.
"Although it may be inconvenient when staff can't get to work, employers should not risk putting employees in danger by encouraging them to drive in unsafe conditions in an attempt to get to work.
"Above all, employers need to consider whether the benefits of paying staff in times of severe weather outweigh the cost of the working hours lost.
"A small act of goodwill by UK bosses may go a long way towards keeping a happy, hard- working and safe workforce."
Business bosses have also been urged to avoid the risk of being landed with potentially enormous damages claims thanks to the cold snap.
Claire Kirwan, head of personal injury at Leamington law- firm Blythe Liggins warned companies to safeguard their customers and employees as the temperature drops or run the risk of accidents occurring and claims coming their way.
Businesses owe a duty of care to people on their premises under the Occupiers Liability Act 1957, which applies to gritting icy car parks and footpaths as well as making sure people are generally safe in the main company building.
Ms Kirwan said: "If you've got a business you must take all reasonable steps to ensure people are safe on your premises. If it is foreseeable that an accident may occur, preventative steps must be taken."
She said the duty of care applies to the building itself and car park and footpaths.
"It's worth keeping an eye on the weather forecast particularly at this time of year."
