Legal position of employees who cannot come to work due to impassability
Bad weather and the resulting impassability are conditions that neither employees nor employers can control. In such circumstances, the case can be both that employees cannot get to work or that employees cannot get home at the end of the working day and therefore either have to wait at the workplace or continue working until someone arrives to relieve them.
If employees cannot get to work, the general rule is that if they are unable to do their job remotely, they are unpaid or work the working day/shift later. The same applies even if the Civil Protection Agency has instructed people to not travel, e.g. because a red weather warning has been issued by the response parties. Employees must notify their employer as soon as possible if they will not be able to come to work due to the weather. If, on the other hand, employees come to work but the employer has closed, sends employees home or asks employees to stay at home, the employer must pay regular wages.
If employees cannot get home at the end of the working day, there is no obligation to pay. If employees can continue to work at the workplace because a replacement can’t get there, they must, however, be paid for the time worked; if they continue to work, they may be entitled to time off due to a violation of the rest period.