Heat problems and organising non unionised healthworkers
Jul 26 2006 20:46
Right there are some workers who work with my mom who have to work in heats which are way above bearable in the laundrette which has now windows or ventillation at the nursing home my mom works in. They aint in a union, and the boss tells the workers who complain that they can be replaced with new staff if they refuse to accept the conditions in the laundrette. Firstly what can my mom do which wont threaten her job, and how should the workers go about changing the conditions. Secondly is there any legislation areound ventillation. tar.
Jul 26 2006 21:00
#2
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/5216640.stm implies it could be a health & safety issue ... if someone got 'ill' though, like John. says there's the potential for victimisation. I don't have much experience with this kind of thing.
Jul 26 2006 23:25
#3
Hi Regulation 7 of the Workplace (Health, Safety & Welfare) Regulations 1992 and the associated Approved Code of Practice (ACOP) does not specify a maximum working temperature. For most kinds of work the acceptable zone of thermal comfort lies between 16ºC and 24ºC. The World Health Organisation recommends that the maximum Air Temperature should be 25ºC. The Approved Code Of Practice states that Employers must take all reasonable steps to achieve a comfortable temperature including insulating hot pipes and equipment, providing air cooling plants, shading windows, siting work stations away from hot areas and using fans and increased ventilation in hot weather. Regulation 7 also states that a sufficient number of thermometers must also be provided to enable workers to check temperatures in indoor workplaces. If anyone suffers ill health due to high temperature at work then the employer faces a civil liability, the normal range of ambulance chasers will be delighted to get involved. As for “keeping your job”, you can get sacked for just looking at your boss in a funny way. The question is the amount the tribunal will award you. You can’t be expected to be the darling of promotion table if you’re rocking the boat, if you want to make trouble your best bet is to get out whilst taking them for everything you can. Even if you keep your job, management will make life unbearable for you until your forced to resign, and constructive dismissal is almost impossible to win. Love LR
Jul 27 2006 18:18
#4
From a friend who was working as an organiser with the T&G - one of their most popular and successful campaigns before he left was sorting out temperature in Sainsburys. Apparently they keep their stores freezing, so what the union did was build up a relationship with the staff till the point arose where they had the confidence to all go into work simultaneously with badges saying 'we're freezing' - it embarassed the company in the eyes of customers and they turned up the heating. Not sure how useful that is for you, but its clear temperature is an issue unions have dealt with. Unfortunately, humidity on the other hand which I understand from several mates who've worked in laundrettes is the real issue doesn't seem to be dealt with.
I'm only going on this mind.
Jul 27 2006 20:31
#5
From a NHS union website-
There is no maximum working temperature, but employers should be assessing the risks of working in the heatwave
With temperatures soaring in the heatwave and with the hottest day yet to come, the Department of Health has taken the unusual step of issuing a heatwave warning. The Met Office has also issued further warnings of high temperatures and has raised the Heat-Health alert to a Level 3 - this level is only triggered when it's confirmed that a major heatwave will occur.
The hot temperatures being experienced all over the UK mean that employers will be facing issues concerning the thermal comfort of their employees ('thermal comfort' is the term used to describe a person's state of mind in terms of whether they feel too hot or too cold) .
By law, there is no maximum workplace temperature. The Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992 state "during working hours, the temperature in all workplaces inside buildings shall be reasonable." The associated Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations Approved Code of Practice further explains:
"The temperature in workrooms should provide reasonable comfort without the need for special clothing. Where such a temperature is impractical because of hot or cold processes, all reasonable steps should be taken to achieve a temperature which is as close as possible to comfortable. 'Workroom' means a room where people normally work for more than short periods.
The temperature in workrooms should normally be at least 16 degrees C unless much of the work involves severe physical effort in which case the temperature should be at least 13C. These temperatures may not, however, ensure reasonable comfort, depending on other factors such as air movement and relative humidity."
What one person deems reasonable, of course, may not be the same as what is deemed reasonable by another, and this is where difficulties often lie for employers and employees.
HSE guidance on thermal comfort in the workplace seeks to define what an acceptable temperature is:
"An acceptable zone of thermal comfort for most people in the UK lies roughly between 13C (56F) and 30C (86F), with acceptable temperatures for more strenuous work activities concentrated towards the bottom end of the range and more sedentary activities towards the higher end."
Employers are expected to prevent your workplace being uncomfortably hot and there should be enough thermometers around the workplace so you can check the temperature. The HSE advises employers they can ensure the thermal comfort of their employees by:
providing air cooling or air conditioning, including desk, pedestal or ceiling-mounted fans (but above 27C fans are ineffective at cooling air)
ensuring windows can be opened
shading employees from direct sunlight with blinds or using reflective film on windows to reduce the heating effects of the sun
providing additional facilities, eg cold water dispensers
introducing formal systems of work to limit exposure, eg flexible working patterns, job rotation, workstation rotation etc
allowing sufficient breaks to enable employees to get cold drinks or cool down
relaxing a formal dress code - but personal protective equipment must be provided and used if required
The HSE also advises employers who receive numerous complaints from employees to carry out a thermal comfort risk assessment.
Employees sweltering in their workplaces run the risk of:
heatstroke and dehydration
tiredness leading to accidents
irritability and the threat of violence
higher stress levels, with enhanced risk of mental and physical illness
At temperatures above 25C heat exhaustion starts to occur. People suffer loss of concentration, increased accidents and loss of productivity.Symptoms include irritability, dizziness, headaches, nausea and fainting. Sweating can also cause problems. You can lose as much as two pints of water an hour through sweating. If fluids and salt are not replaced nausea, vomiting and muscle cramps can occur. Prolonged sweating can also cause skin rash and blocked pores ('prickly heat').
When assessing risks relating to heat it should be recognised that women who are pregnant are more susceptible to heat intolerance.
The TUC is pressing for a maximum working temperature of 30C (27C where strenuous work is involved).
could workers start getting ill from the heat perhaps? though hmmm that wouldn't happen all at once and victimisation might be likely. Best wait for someone who knows more than me. We've been buying fans with work paying (cos we do the stationery/equipment ordering), but it's still ridiculously hot