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Can you be fired for not showing up to work because of dangerous driving conditions?

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Chasm378

Junior Member
Massachusetts

This morning the roads were very dangerous. My road (which is downhill then turns to the left) was particularly dangerous.

I woke up and prepared to go into work.

-My shift starts a 9AM
-At 7:30 AM I decided that I would have to delay my 1 hour commute to work because I could barely even make it to my car (which was parked on the side of the road) because the road was all ice. I called work at 8 AM and then at 8:30 AM where I got in touch with my manager.
I told him my situation and he acknowledged it albeit upset.

At 9:00-9:30 I went outside to check the roads again. I saw that my road was still covered in ice and 2 houses down where the hill stops and the road turns, a car was severely damaged and had crashed into the group mailboxes, destroying half of them.

I called my boss again at 9:30. Explained what I saw and said that I still can't leave yet and that I will let him know when I can come. He acknowledged what I said.

At 10:25 he called me and said, I can either come now or lose my job.
I was just checking the road at the time and it seemed safe enough, So i did come to work, however, if I did not come to work at that moment and he fired me, I wondered what that situation would entail.

My boss said that all the other employees made it to work fine and that I just need to leave earlier and drive slower.

I understand that not showing up to work can warrant a justified firing but environmental conditions specifically unique to my road made the voyage to work significantly more dangerous then my other workers.
In fact if I had left before 9 am it would have been my car that would have been severely damaged and destroyed mailboxes.

I would have many witnesses and persons to vouch for the unique and dangerous situation on my road.

Do i have any rights in this situation? or does me not showing up to work warrant a firing? Would I have a case?
 


cbg

I'm a Northern Girl
And what part of MA are you in, pray? It's over 50 degrees here. I also did some spot checks of other parts of the state before I posted and didn't find anywhere under 40.

Oddly enough, wrongallthetime is not wrong this time. (Even a broken clock is right twice a day). You have not posted anything to suggest that firing you would be illegal. There is nothing in the law that says you cannot be fired for not showing up for work due to "unique" driving conditions.
 

Hot Topic

Senior Member
Look at it this way. I'm sure if you asked the employees who made it to work (or the boss), they would all indicate how dangerous the commute was. But they made it.

Sure, you can be fired.
 

Just Blue

Senior Member
And what part of MA are you in, pray? It's over 50 degrees here. I also did some spot checks of other parts of the state before I posted and didn't find anywhere under 40.

Oddly enough, wrongallthetime is not wrong this time. (Even a broken clock is right twice a day). You have not posted anything to suggest that firing you would be illegal. There is nothing in the law that says you cannot be fired for not showing up for work due to "unique" driving conditions.
Yeah...I live in a particular part of the state that was forecast to have issues. We did not. Rain was it...The real downpour didn't start till after 5 pm.
 

swalsh411

Senior Member
If you are fired for not showing up to work and you can reasonably show it was because travel conditions were too dangerous then you will probably not be disqualified for unemployment due to misconduct.
 

applecruncher

Senior Member
I sympathize with you, but if you had been fired because of that incident, you would have no recourse. Some bosses are more understanding and lenient with certain employees than others.

By the way, all those witnesses who you claim would have vouched for you don’t amount to a hill of beans.
 

commentator

Senior Member
Do the best you can. Keep the employer fully informed of your situation, what is it going to be like for you trying to get in to work. Do your best. Keep them informed. If it works out that you make it, so much the better. If it doesn't if you end up in a ditch, at least you tried. That would help your chances if youare fired, and then they question to approve your unemployment benefits, which is the only thing you could get if fired for a reason like this,[[ Maybe}}
 

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