Extreme heat warning from the Met Office

Tuesday 20 July 2021

Yesterday, the Met Office issued an extreme heat warning for parts of the UK following the hottest day of the year over the weekend.

With high temperatures expected to continue for the rest of the week, and employees slowly returning to the workplace following Freedom Day, it is incumbent on employers to ensure the comfort and wellbeing of their staff.

In the UK there is no legal minimum or maximum workplace temperature, irrespective of how hot (or cold) the weather gets. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) guidance simply states that the temperature in the working environment should be at least 16C or 13cC if the job entails ‘rigorous physical effort’.

With temperatures expected to hit 33C this week, the health and safety of employees should be a serious concern for employers as they could become liable for injuries caused by extreme heat in the workplace.

Rather unhelpfully, the HSE guidance does not differentiate between working environments (such as an office or a factory) and there is no guidance concerning maximum temperatures in the workplace.

The Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992 do however state that ‘during working hours, the temperature in all workplaces inside buildings shall be reasonable’. This places an obligation on the employer to ensure that, no matter what type of workplace they operate, employees should not suffer discomfort. It is a subjective assessment.

As with all health and safety obligations, a risk assessment should be carried out to identify any issues that may arise as a result of the predicted heatwave. This enables an employer to be prepared and able to take immediate action when the mercury starts to rise.

If you would like to know more about how the workplace temperature might affect your business,  please email or call our Employment Law team today on 0113 207 0000.