What would you do if an employee complains about the heat at work and threatens to go home?Although there is no maximum legal temperature for a workplace, as employers we are required to maintain a reasonable temperature for our employees to work in.\u00a0 Naturally, our employees will have different views about what is “too hot” so when faced with an initial complaint about the temperature at work you will need to consider whether or not they’ve got a point.\u00a0 For example, is the type of work they are doing particularly physical or are they located in a spot that is especially warm?\u00a0 If you decide that the complaint is well founded, then you should liaise with the employee to see what steps could alleviate the problem.\u00a0 It may be something as simple as providing a fan.\u00a0\u00a0
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\nIf the complaint is coming from a group of employees, it would appear that the problem is wider or more serious.\u00a0 As before, you will need to look into the situation and if appriopriate, rope in your employees to get sensible suggestions as to what would best alleviate the problem.\u00a0 Some suggetions might include:<\/p>\n
arranging for out of service air conditioning units to be repaired, or stuck windows to be refurbished;
\nchecking the thermostat temperature on aircon units;
\ninstalling or repairing blinds;
\nsupplying cold drinks;
\nrelaxing certain aspects of the dress code; or even
\nnegotiating a temporary system of regular short breaks instead of a single lunch break.
\nIf, in practice, there is just one employee who is threatening to go home and you do not accept that they have grounds to do so, you can tell the employee that if they go they will not be paid for the hours they miss and they will be disciplined for unauthorised absence.
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\nAs always, if an employee still decides to go and ultimately brings a Tribunal claim, it will be up to us to show that their complaint was unjustified and that we had taken steps to ensure the temperature at work was within the magic “reasonahble” range.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Here is a simple checklist on issues arising from hot temperatures at work:<\/p>\n
1.\u00a0 Dress codes<\/p>\n
If employees comfort at work can be improved they are likely to be more productive.\u00a0 Telling your team that the dress code is temporarily relaxed is also a useful way to remind employees of what you consider to be acceptable and what is not unacceptable regardless of the climate (e.g. bare midriffs).\u00a0<\/p>\n
2. Cold drinks<\/p>\n
As a health and safety measure, all employers are required to provide an adequate supply of drinking water but supplying some alternative chilled drinks can really help to lift morale when they would rather be on the beach.<\/p>\n
3. Cool the workplace<\/p>\n
Checking and servicing any air conditioning units before the weather gets too hot will avoid an uncomfortable wait for the engineer in July!\u00a0 If you are one of the many employers without the luxury of air con, it may be necessary to supply fans and ensure windows can be opened and blinds closed.<\/p>\n
4. Holiday limits<\/p>\n
Sunny weather can lead to a stampede of holiday requests.\u00a0 Establish clear rules or guidelines about how many employees can be on holiday at a time to avoid the remaining employees being overloaded.\u00a0 Agreeing to holiday on a “first come, first served” basis is the norm, although all holiday requests should be subject to business requirements.<\/p>\n
5. Tackle unauthorized absences
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\nYou might notice an increase in unauthorised absences during warm weather and\/or during sporting events.\u00a0 This can be reduced if your team know that they are going to be required to account for any absences, even short term ones.\u00a0 Conducting return to work interviews can work wonders.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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