It seems so obvious that it is strange that the Ministry of Labor has not yet prepared such a regulation. It is about the temperature at which you can work, above which you cannot work, and what an employee can count on except for water – a break and rest in a cool place.
Agnieszka Dziemianowicz-Bak, the left-wing minister of family, labour and social policy, has a clear goal: to set maximum temperatures in workplaces, and quickly.
– Because of climate change, which we feel directly, also at work, more and more countries have come to the conclusion that these issues should be regulated in the form of uniform regulations – he says.
The maximum temperature is likely to be different: different for office rooms and different for other rooms. This is currently the case for the minimum temperature stipulated in the regulation (offices: 18°C, other rooms: 14°C). So how much can it be? 28°C is already an important legal limit, but not many come close to it.
– When the temperature at the workplace due to weather conditions exceeds 28 degrees, the employer is only obliged to provide water – lawyer Katarzyna Lodegowska reported.
On such hot days, Mrs. Laura Popałło is offered ice cream by her employer, which is quite understandable in the case of her workplace – an ice cream shop. – You can go later, for example, to swim in the lake, and it’s also nice to cool down – he says. – I eat ice cream every day – he admits.
“Let’s follow the example of the people of Southern Europe.”
Following changes to the Labour Code, the list of employer obligations towards employees working in extremely high temperatures – for example in catering establishments – will certainly increase. This could, for example, be to allocate additional break time.
– Let’s follow the example of people from southern Europe. There is a concept of siesta in the Mediterranean basin – points out Adam Pietrzak, emergency medicine specialist.
Read also: Extreme heat on four continents. “This is definitely not normal.”
Extreme heat on four continents. “This is definitely not normal.”Justyna Zuber/Facts of the World TVN24 BiS
The human body is an organ that requires a constant and stable internal temperature and, therefore, free heat exchange. The disruption of this stability, and the overheating of the central nervous system, causes problems for the employer and the employee, and in extreme cases, danger.
– We gain a lot of weight and our body will not be able to cool itself naturally. If we overheat our system, it starts to work incorrectly. Above forty degrees, protein damage will occur, including damage to brain proteins – warns Adam Pietrzak.
When will the new regulations come into effect?
Hence the government’s decisive reaction. We will see the first effects at the end of July.
– Many of these provisions are scattered across various legal acts. As a first step, we, as the Ministry of Labour, Family and Social Policy, want to prepare a set of guidelines. We call it “good working climate” – so that the rights that employees are entitled to are clear, legible and clear to them – says Agnieszka Dziemianowicz-Bak.
Due to the measures, the amended labor law will come into effect after the new year at the earliest. So we will have to face the coming heat wave without this support.
Main image source: TVN24
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