The “Beast from the East” and Storm Emma caused disruption for many Colleges and Universities. Alongside industrial action in Sunderland College and at Durham and Newcastle Universities, this has caused some senior managers problems in knowing how to manage the situation – and what they should expect of staff.

If the institution that you work at has been closed, then it follows that you cannot get into work to carry out your normal duties. If working from home is expected (and it might be part of your contract) then you should carry on and work as normal. However, it may well be that the weather will have impacted on your ability to work as usual, so a normal day’s work will not have been possible. This will include where school closures have had an impact on the ability of carers to work as normal.

There are some educational institutions and work roles where working from home is neither usual, nor practical. This could cause issues if staff do not have the equipment and facilities to carry out work duties. There are some roles where no tasks can easily be carried out away from work premises. Access to a PC and appropriate facilities (the internet and work drives) might be relatively easy and straight forward when you are in an educational institution, but working from home on WiFi on a tablet or smartphone is not always possible or desirable. Most UCU members will not have been provided with facilities and equipment from their employer to work at home. The general rule should be “Do what you can”.

If you face issues (including any sort of detriment) because of the current circumstances – which are not in anyone’s control – you should contact the union.

UCU, the TUC and ACAS have published various bits of advice, which you can access below.

As ever, please contact your UCU Representative if you have a concern about anything that you are questioned about during this cold weather period that we are having.