Slip Sliding Away

Jan 18, 2007 23:49

Yesterday I decided to test my car and actually run out on the ice, making the 25 mile trip to work. The car did alright, especially going over the Bush Turnpike, where a long stretch of it is elevated over the Trinity River. There was plenty of ice and snow, and there was more than a few cars on the side of the road, in ravines, and turned around the wrong way. the work ranch is pretty far out, so there wasn't much sand on the roads out that way.

Chris' car, which needs some new tires, didn't make it very far. After sliding across an intersection, he went back home.

After an hour and a half on the road, I finally made it to work. A good half of my co-workers didn't come in. Still, I didn't come the furthest distance, one guy drove 45 miles to get there. I worried about getting home, but enough of the ice and slush had evaporated, that i only had to keep it under 30 mph getting back on the Bush Tollway. Driving home took an hour.

Here's why actually braving it, and going to work was good. Today management made a decision and told everyone that didn't come in that they would be charged with an unpaid personal day. Besides the fact that many people stayed home because schools were canceled, I was amazed that they would penalize people for doing the safe thing and stay off the road. The moral of the story is: risking your life, or at least your property ,is what you should be doing for this job. This job that doesn't pay you enough as is.

there was a lot of grumbling, and so management decided that we would open Saturday to allow people to make up the time they missed. Given that it's optional is one thing, but still, it seems rather rude to ask people to give up another day when the reason for the missed time was not of their making.

To add insult to injury, another winter blast is due on Friday night/Saturday morning, so the roads may be iced up once again. Management will put people up overnight in a hotel some what close to work tomorrow night just so they can make it in on Saturday. I'm guessing the money they may spend for hotel rooms might cost more than actually giving people sick time for Wednesday.

It seems as though the company doesn't like to close sites for weather related emergencies, but a snow day in Texas is much different than a snow day in Boston. They need to know that we aren't prepared for this stuff, and productivity hours will be lost. Is it too much to ask for a little compassion on this?

Heck, I got paid for two days that we were closed after September 11th and for another four that we lost to Tropical Storm Allison when our building was flooded out - all in the same year. There were also two days lost to evacuations for Hurricane Rita two years ago. Luckily Dallas isn't susceptible to Hurricanes.

With the way things are going, weather-wise, I guess I'll need to make sure my tires are in good shape and inflated properly. There's going to be a few more slick drives before this winter is over.

dallas, houston, weather, work sucks, automobile, current events

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