- Статьи
- Economy
- The weather has been like this for six months: the courts recognized the snowfall as a valid reason for being late for work
The weather has been like this for six months: the courts recognized the snowfall as a valid reason for being late for work
The courts considered it unlawful to dismiss employees who were late for work due to bad weather conditions. In particular, cases were considered when one employee could not start the car due to severe frost, and another got into a traffic jam. In such cases, it is important to warn the authorities in advance and take a certificate of the delay in transport, lawyers advise. How not to get fired due to a snow collapse — in the Izvestia article.
Can I be fired for being late due to snowfall
The Russian courts recognized the bad weather as a valid reason for being late. Izvestia analyzed judicial practice for 2025 and early 2026. Most often, an employee wins such a dispute if he did not have the physical opportunity to come to work on time, for example, due to a snow collapse.
In one of the cases reviewed, a person flew to another city for the January holidays. The return flight was canceled because the airport was closed due to heavy snowfall. The employee received a flight cancellation certificate and rebooked the ticket for the nearest available date.
Due to missing four days, the company fired a specialist for absenteeism. The courts did not agree with the punishment, because the employer did not take into account the circumstances. The cassation also concluded that there was a valid reason for the non-appearances.
Another case concerned a specialist who, due to severe frost, could not start the car and got to work four and a half hours late. He was also fired for absenteeism. Three instances did not see a gross violation in the actions of the employee.
He notified the management about the malfunction of the car due to the cold. And after the problem was fixed, I immediately arrived at the office. The delay did not have any negative consequences for the employer. The choice of the strictest penalty was not justified, the courts concluded.
The next trial concerned a Russian citizen who had left for work in advance, but got into a traffic jam due to snowfall. He was four hours late, for which he was fired. The courts also sided with him, and the employer failed to justify the legality of such a severe punishment.
A very recent case is that on January 19, 2026, the Supreme Court sided with an employee of a research institute who was fired after absenteeism due to heavy snowfall. That day, she was with her underage daughter in the Moscow region with elderly parents, the road to the city skidded, and she could not come. The municipal service cleared the streets in the village only in the late afternoon.
In all these cases, the courts recognize the lack of physical ability to arrive at work on time and consider dismissal to be too harsh a measure. In addition, the victims warned their employers about this in advance.
However, weather conditions are not always recognized by courts as a valid reason. In one case, an employee was 15 minutes late because there was heavy snowfall, freezing rain and icy conditions in the city. He walked cautiously, fearing for his health. The employer announced a reprimand.
The courts agreed with the punishment. The day before, the townspeople were warned about adverse weather conditions. The employee knew about them in advance. He lived within walking distance from his place of work, and could also use public transport.
— In general, there are frequent situations with road closures, difficult weather and transport conditions that affect delays. Each case is individual and requires clarification of why a particular disciplinary measure was taken," said Vladimir Shalaev, a lawyer and partner at the Legal Group.
At the same time, according to the law, it is possible to immediately dismiss an employee for being absent from the workplace for more than four hours, he said.
Judicial practice has become stable and predictable. The courts have clearly determined that it is not the fact of bad weather itself that decides, but the proven inability to get to work due to insurmountable obstacles (for example, blocked roads or stopping all transport), said Miroslava Brizitskaya, lawyer at Sokolov, Trusov and Partners Law Firm in Moscow.
According to her, an employee can be guided by these cases, but not just formally refer to them.
"Practice provides a clear algorithm: the actions of an employee to collect evidence and promptly inform the employer are of key importance," the lawyer concluded.
At the same time, in January 2026, the State Duma called on employers not to fine Russians who were late due to snowfall.
What to do if you are late for work due to bad weather
In case of delay, it is necessary to obtain from the carrier a certificate of delayed transport, a printout of the taxi route or similar proof. It is also necessary to warn the employer — probably, then sanctions will be avoided, Vladimir Shalaev advised.
Punishment is unlikely if the deterioration of the weather was of the nature of force majeure (an official state of emergency, a complete stop of transport), and the employee confirmed this with documents and informed his superiors in a timely manner, Miroslava Brizitskaya agreed.
In case of natural disasters and delays in vehicles, you can request information from the Meteorological Service of the region and the Ministry of Transport. The courts also accept media publications as evidence, said Elena Gladysheva, managing partner of the Moscow Law Firm RI-Consulting, member of the MRO Delovaya Rossiya.
However, the employee's actions will also be evaluated, she noted. For example, if snowfall was forecast (as in January of this year), and the employee simply decided to leave far away, then there will be a question about his good faith and discretion.
According to statistics from Rostrud's Online Inspection portal, which was studied by Izvestia, since the beginning of the year, the agency has received 2,895 complaints due to illegal dismissal - 31% of the total number. This is significantly more than the number of complaints for the same period from 2025 to 2035.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
