The requirement to maintain the correct temperature in the workplace results from the General Health and Safety Regulations Ordinance. On the other hand, failure to maintain the required temperature cannot be justified by the economic situation of the employer. It is worth noting that the correct temperature values can be verified by PIP inspectors, and any irregularities found in this respect are regulated in the form of administrative orders.

It should be remembered that the temperature in the workplace should be appropriate to the type of work performed (methods of work and physical effort necessary to perform it) not lower than 14oC (287 K), unless technological reasons do not allow it. In workplaces where light physical work is carried out and in office spaces, the temperature must not be lower than 18°C (291 K).

A work room is a room intended for the stay of employees where work is performed. Premises in which:

• the total time spent by the same employees during one work shift is less than 2 hours, and the activities performed are of a casual nature or the work consists of a short-term stay related to the supervision or maintenance of equipment or maintaining cleanliness and order,
• technological processes do not allow to ensure appropriate conditions for employees to stay in order to serve them, without the use of personal protective equipment and maintaining a special regime of work organization,
• plants or animals are bred, regardless of the duration of the staff staying.

Energy costs can lead to cases where the required temperatures in workplaces, especially office work, are not met.

Deviations from the minimum temperature are of course possible, but only for technological reasons. Thus, the economic difficulties of the workplace, including the choice between paying the full salary and ensuring the required temperature, cannot be justified.

During the inspection of health and safety obligations during the winter season, the inspector may appear with a thermometer. Interestingly, such a device is not directly included in the provisions of the PIP Act, which mentions the possibility of recording the course of an inspection with the use of an image or sound recording device. However, it can be assumed that the use of a thermometer is necessary for the purpose of assessing the employer’s compliance with the minimum temperature regulations. In such a case, it is difficult for the inspector to have to resort to the help of experts and specialists, as well as accredited laboratories.

Finding irregularities in the minimum temperature in the workplace will result in the preparation of a protocol, to which objections can be raised. They may be justified in a situation where the measurement value is at the limit, in particular taking into account the measurement error of the device used by the inspector.

The inspection report will form the basis for issuing an order to ensure the required temperature. In typical cases, the inspector will not issue an order that is immediately enforceable – in terms of stopping the work. At the same time, it should be remembered that any written declarations of employees will not entitle the employer to deviate from the minimum temperature and will not be taken into account by the inspector.

Source: https://www.portalbhp.pl/blog-o-tematyce-bhp/inspektor-pip-z-termometrem-w-zakladzie-pracy-10725.html   ; author: Sebastian Kryczka

Supported by Norway through Norway Grants 2014-2021, in the frame of the Programme “Social Dialogue – Decent Work”.