What is unworkable weather?

Unworkable weather — in Dutch onwerkbaar weer — is weather in which work on site cannot reasonably continue: frost, snow, prolonged rain or storm. In Dutch construction and civil engineering this is not a matter of judgement but of measurable criteria, set out in a dedicated collective agreement.

There are two sides to it. Practically, you cannot lay bricks or pour concrete in frost, and working at height in a storm is dangerous. Financially, someone has to carry the standstill; there is a scheme for that, under which the employer first pays for a number of days and can afterwards claim a benefit through the national scheme.

How the Dutch scheme works

• The employee continues to receive their agreed wage, both during the waiting days and during the unworkable days that follow.
• The first days are for the employer’s account; these are the waiting days.
• After that the employer can apply on the employee’s behalf for a benefit from the national body UWV and tops it up to the full wage.
• The employer must report unworkable weather to UWV daily before 10:00.

Waiting days

• Frost, black ice and snowfall: 2 waiting days per winter season (1 November to 31 March).
• Storm: 2 waiting days per calendar year.
• Heavy rainfall: 19 waiting days per calendar year.

The criteria are objective. For frost, temperatures at fixed measuring moments overnight and in the morning are used; for rain, the number of minutes of precipitation within working hours. Always check the current text of the agreement, since the exact thresholds and the number of waiting days can change from one agreement period to the next.

What it means on site

• Programme frost-sensitive work outside winter. Bricklaying, concreting, plastering and external painting are the most vulnerable.
• Build a realistic weather allowance into the programme. For external work in the winter half-year, a few days of float is not a luxury.
• Set out in the contract who carries the weather risk and what delay means for the completion date.
• Take measures that let you keep going: frost blankets over fresh concrete, frost-free storage of mortar, temporary sheeting or a temporary roof.

Related terms

• Frost resistance of concrete
• Build cost
• Construction programme
• Bricklaying
• Terms and conditions

Want to learn more about construction terms? Visit our knowledge base at fredsdiyplans.com.