'Too hot to work'? What Spanish law says about top temperatures on the job

UNPRECEDENTED temperatures across northern Europe have led sweltering residents to question, probably for the first time, how high the mercury has to climb to be 'too hot to work' – and, in some cases, no laws have ever been in place, since they have never been needed.

With parts of the UK seeing temperatures higher than in southern and Mediterranean Spain on Monday and Tuesday – shifting the historic record upwards to a top figure of 40.2Cº and hovering between 32ºC and 40ºC in most of the country – schools shut 'for safety reasons' and many employees questioned whether they could legally request to work from home.

It turned out that, although minimum workplace temperatures are in force, there is no set maximum in Britain – only a requirement on the part of employers to ensure the job environment is 'comfortable'.

Part of the argument for the lack of a 'maximum workplace temperature' was that in iron foundries and glass-blowing workshops, and similar environments where employees are, necessarily, exposed to extreme artificial heat, any 'top legal figure' would make it impossible for them to do their jobs.

This could be set to change, as a mass movement across the country is now pressuring the government to rethink existing legislation, given that heatwaves sparking 'red warnings' for the first time in the UK are likely to become more frequent, longer and hotter, due to human-induced climate change.

But what about Spain? 

Even in the coldest parts of Spain, temperatures in the mid-30s and heatwaves pushing thermometers towards the 40s are standard during a Spanish summer; the world-famous 'long lunch hour' is a by-product of the days when a third of the population lived off agriculture, and now that most indoor workplaces have air-conditioning, the only reason for shops and offices to shut for between two and five hours in early afternoon is that everyone has got used to it and they don't want to change it.

Indeed, indoor workplaces are far more likely to have air-conditioning than private homes – an estimated 36% of residences in Spain do so, rising to around 73% in the provinces widely known as 'the national frying pan' (Sevilla, Córdoba and Jaén), but dropping below 20% in the north and centre-north, where central heating is more likely to be a standard feature and gets far more use throughout the year.

As a result, it is probably much more comfortable to stay at work over the middle of the day rather than at home.

In any case, Spain does have a 'top workplace temperature' law, and it could be that the UK will use it as a reference if it decides to change its own legislation.

Also, having 'legal figures' helps resolve office disputes: Women are, biologically, more likely to feel the cold than men, although from around the onset of the perimenopause – roughly mid-30s to mid-40s – and post-menopause, right up to and even beyond retirement age, the gender 'thermal comfort barrier' reverses: Many of these women will suffer hot flashes, or find they generally 'feel warmer' most of the time than men.

Humidity, not just heat

Spanish media sources consulted the National Work Hygiene Safety Institute (INSTH), which quoted the Royal Decree, or Bill of Law, number 486/1997.

The parameters contained therein still apply, 25 years on, since no replacement law has ever been brought in to update it.

And it does not just cover temperature, but also humidity: After all, a very hot, dry climate is generally much easier to bear than a moderately hot, but damp and sticky atmosphere.

'Sitting' workplaces

Humidity is, therefore, regulated in Spanish working environments – 'relative humidity' must be between 30% and 70%, which appears a high upper limit at first, but with lower temperatures legally in place, the 'sweaty' sense is less apparent.

For job premises where there is a risk of static electricity, however, the relative humidity maximum is 50%.

In employment environments where work is sedentary – such as offices, where staff are mostly desk-based and sitting – temperatures should range between 17ºC and 27ºC.

Job environments with 'some physical activity'

Indoor workspaces where 'light manual work' is carried out – such as in restaurants and bars, or shops, where staff are on their feet constantly and may be lifting moderately-heavy objects – the legal temperature frame is between 14ºC and 25ºC, and the humidity threshold is the same.

No specific temperature appears to exist for much heavier manual work carried out indoors, although a rough guide would be to base this on the framework for 'light work', minus one to three degrees.

Neither are there set temperatures for outdoor work, as these are harder to control, but employers forcing personnel to carry out their duties in exceptional heat and without adequate protection, especially heavy labour in very hot weather, still risk hefty fines, closure, or even imprisonment, since it would be considered reasonably obvious that they were putting their staff in danger.

That's what's legal. But what's recommended?

Clearly, even within the upper and lower limits set by law, there is still potential for great discomfort if the rules are incorrectly interpreted. Setting an office environment at the maximum of 27ºC with relative humidity of 70% would be truly unpleasant, especially in winter where the contrast with the weather outside and typical temperatures at home would exacerbate the sensation of stuffiness.

To this end, the Diversification and Savings Institute (IDAE) has issued guidelines which, whilst not legally binding, are sensible, since a comfortable workforce is more productive and comfortable customers spend more time on the premises.

Relative humidity in indoor workplaces and in any building customers may enter should be around 45% to 60% in summer – not too low to create a dramatic contrast, but not so high as to provide no respite from the atmosphere outdoors.

Ideally, says the IDAE, inside temperatures at work and in premises open to the public should be no higher than 26% in summer.

Generally, health and safety guidelines in Spain issued in the mid-noughties recommended that summer indoor temperatures should be kept at around 24ºC to 26ºC, and winter figures at around 21ºC.

This way, staff and customers do not feel the contrast so much – a too-high winter temperature would be a shock to the system and uncomfortable, and prior to these guidelines, most residents were used to carrying a cardigan even in 40ºC heat so they could pop it on when entering bars and shops; otherwise, they tended to end up shivering with cold within minutes.