HR expert explains how hot is too hot to work

When the temperature is soaring, it can be really difficult to focus on anything except how hot it is. If you’re working outside or in a building without the right air conditioning, it can be difficult to complete your duties. But how hot is too hot? Is there any justification for going home when the summer temperature becomes unbearable?

Kathryn Gilbert, head of HR services at Bhayani HR & Employment Law, spoke to GTSE.co.uk and explained whether you can refuse to work in excessive heat and what employers’ legal responsibilities are.

She said: “As hotter summers become more common in the UK, employers will increasingly need to treat heatwaves as a genuine workplace health and wellbeing issue rather than simply an inconvenience.”

When is it too hot to work?

Under current UK law, there is no maximum workplace temperature, but employees are legally required to ensure workplace temperatures are “reasonable”.

Kathryn explained: “The legislation deliberately avoids prescribing an upper limit because what is considered safe or reasonable will vary significantly depending on the type of work being carried out.

“For example, an acceptable temperature in a warehouse, kitchen or manufacturing environment may look very different to an office setting. Factors such as physical exertion, ventilation, humidity, protective clothing and access to breaks all play a part.”

There has been a call for a legal maximum temperature, but enforcing this would be difficult.

Kathryn said: “A more likely development is increased guidance from the HSE around managing heat-related risks and stronger expectations on employers to carry out meaningful risk assessments during periods of extreme heat.”

Can you leave work if it gets too hot?

If you’re just hot and uncomfortable, you can’t just decide to stop working – but if there is a health and safety risk, then you do have some options.

Kathryn explained: “Under employment law, employees are protected from detriment or dismissal if they leave or refuse to return to a workplace where they reasonably believe there is serious and imminent danger. That could potentially apply in extreme heat situations, particularly where employers have failed to take sensible preventative steps.

“In reality, most situations are best resolved through practical communication and temporary adjustments rather than employees walking out. Employers who engage sensibly and respond quickly to concerns are far less likely to face disputes.”

Will I still get paid if I leave because of heat?

Kathryn said: “Pay can become a grey area. If an employer instructs staff to stop working or closes the workplace, employees would usually still be entitled to pay unless contracts clearly state otherwise. If employees refuse to work without sufficient justification, that becomes more complicated and fact-specific.

“From a commercial perspective, the reputational and employee engagement impact of handling extreme weather poorly can often be just as damaging as the legal risk itself.”