11 May 2009
Jocelyn Dorrell

As forecasters predict a warm, dry summer, the TUC has called for an upper limit on workplace temperature.

In a new report published on 6 May, the TUC argues the case for an "action level" - similar to that used in noise legislation - of 24°C.

"At this point the employer should be required to take action to ensure the temperature does not go above this," the TUC suggests. "In addition there should be an absolute maximum temperature of 30°C (27°C for those doing strenuous work), at which point workers should not have to work and an employer should be liable for prosecution."

The TUC says high temperatures in the workplace can cause rashes, headaches, dizzy spells, fainting and heat cramps. Stifling conditions also affect concentration, notes the report, making workers feel more tired and making them more likely to endanger their own or their colleagues' safety.

But in July 2006 the HSE seemed to reject the idea of an upper temperature limit, arguing that a one-size-fits-all approach would be impractical and difficult to enforce across more than four million workplaces.

The Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations do not stipulate a legal maximum or a legal minimum working temperature; they state that "During working hours, the temperature in all workplaces inside buildings shall be reasonable."

The associated Approved Code of Practice clarifies the position on low temperatures - advising that the temperature should not fall below 16°C, or 13°C where the work involves severe physical effort - but it does not recommend an upper limit. Instead, it calls on employers to take reasonable steps to maintain a comfortable temperature and offers advice on how to do this.

A massive 94% of respondents to a recent TUC survey said their workplaces had been too hot to work in last year despite a wash-out summer, and 42% said they regularly worked in unbearably hot conditions.

"Even when the summers are bad, as last year's was, the temperature in some workplaces can be unbearable for employees and potentially dangerous in others," said TUC general secretary Brendan Barber. "No one is expected to work in sub-zero temperatures but overheated employees are meant to carry on regardless of how high the office temperature soars."

The TUC report, The Case for a Legally Enforceable Maximum Temperature, can be downloaded here.

Categories:
HSE, Risk assessment, Risk assessment, News



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