Published on 1 - September - 2009

News

Legal Matters: Don't go mad in the midday sun

Only mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun but employers have a duty to protect their employees from the heat, says Fergal Dowling, head of employment law at Irwin Mitchell.

The promise of a hot summer may have excited schoolchildren looking forward to their holiday, but it was probably not so exciting for those having to work in the much-heralded heat.

Employers, in line with their legal duty of care, need to ensure that they provide safe working conditions for employees, irrespective of whether duties require staff to work in or
outdoors.

It is some time ago that the trend to dress-down-Fridays allowed office workers to wear more casual attire in the workplace. Its popularity in recent years has waned but, should the temperatures soar into the high 20s and even 30s, it is likely that employees would want to dispense with corporate clothing in favour of something cooler. This may particularly apply to those environments where suits are the order of the day, often accessorised with ties for the male staff or neck scarves for the female staff.

Bosses may therefore want to consider relaxing the workplace dress codes and taking other steps to make conditions more comfortable. Strategies might include:

· Suggesting that staff dress down but keep a set of corporate clothing in the office in case it is required
· Deploying water coolers
· Provision of fans if there is no air-conditioning
· Locating desks away from windows

Actions of this nature could well help to maintain employee productivity. In addition, it may be possible to reduce energy bills by being able to turn down the air conditioning. Where a change in dress code is introduced it must be apply to and be fair to all parties or bosses could face allegations of discrimination.

While there is legal maximum temperature for a workplace, employee representatives are looking at an indoor absolute maximum of 30°C, with employers required to take action when temperatures reach 24°C.

The introduction of a rota or work schedule whereby employees work and avoid the hottest time of the day - rather like in parts of mainland Europe - may be appropriate.
Such a strategy might be particularly relevant for those who work outdoors and are potentially at risk from exposure to the sun.

It has been estimated that there are around 100,000 new cases of skin cancer a year. Employers might therefore be well advised to regard the sun as a workplace hazard and thus be considered when compiling risk assessments.

Measures that managers might want to consider could include providing:

· information on avoiding sunburn, in a range of languages
· sun lotion with a suitable SPF
· protective yet lightweight clothing and hats
Employees would have to play their part and adopt any measures introduced, so that it would be only mad dogs going out in the midday sun without protection.

Call 0870 1500 100 or e-mail fergal.dowling@irwinmitchell.com