Inclement Weather/Emergency Policy
Bigelow Free Public Library
In order to fulfill its mission of public service the Bigelow Free Public Library will make every reasonable effort to open to the public as scheduled, consistent with safe access for the public and the staff.
However, inclement weather can cause transportation problems or locally hazardous conditions. At times when the weather becomes hazardous to the health and/or safety of the public and/or library staff, the library will close, delay opening or close ahead of schedule. The decision to close or postpone the opening of the library due to inclement weather is reached at the discretion of the Library Director after consultation with the trustees and predicted weather patterns.
National or State weather service advisories concerning travel during storm conditions, or during the clean-up afterwards, will always be followed. If the governor of Massachusetts declares a State of Emergency, the library will remain closed.
If the building is to close early, library patrons already in the facility will be notified immediately.
If the Library remains closed for an entire day because of an emergency situation, all staff scheduled to work that day will be paid for the number of hours they were scheduled to work. If an emergency closing occurs during hours the library is open, employees will be paid for any remaining hours scheduled.
When the Library has decided to open, but extreme weather conditions make it impossible for an employee to arrive at the regular time, reasonable allowances for lateness will be made. If the employee cannot report for work within a reasonable time, he/she can utilize vacation or personal leave equal to their regular work schedule for that day.
The Bigelow Free Public Library is an old building and does not always have a functioning HVAC system. Per the US Department of Labor, when the internal library temperature reaches less than 67° or more than 80°, the library will close.
If the library closes unexpectedly, the chair of the Trustees will be called.
Revised: February 27, 2018