Keep your cool in summer heat

Soaring summer temperatures mean employers have to deal with low productivity, additional stress and increased absenteeism.

And as the weather gets hotter, indoor workers can suffer from poor concentration and be irritable with their colleagues, according to the Health & Safety Executive.

Employers must ensure the temperature inside buildings provides “reasonable comfort” or they will be breaking the law.

The HSE has produced practical advice on keeping cool in its guide Thermal Comfort in the Workplace, Guidance for Employers.

It says employers must:

• Provide air conditioning or fans

• Shade windows with blinds

• Site workstations away from direct sunlight

• Provide cold water dispensers

Sign up to our weekly round-up of HR news and guidance

Receive the Personnel Today Direct e-newsletter every Wednesday

Email(Required)

OptOut

From time to time, we will send you emails about selected products, events and services from Personnel Today and OHW+ - but you can choose to opt-out at any time. If you do not wish to receive these emails, please tick this box.

Phone

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Δ

• Allow breaks for employees to get cold drinks or to cool