Heat legislation
Lace conditions of workplaces are regulated for the Royal Decree 486/1997, of 14 April, through which minimum health and safety provisions are established in the workplaces.
In its Annexe III establishes that the exhibition to environmental conditions of the workplaces should not suppose a risk for the security and the workers’ health and brand an interval of temperatures in which must be the workplace, according to the activity that is made. In the local of closed work, for sedentary works specific to branch the temperature must be between 17ºC and 27ºC and for light works the temperature must be between 14ºC and 25ºC.
Works outdoors
Recently the Royal Decree 486/1997 has been modifying for the Royal Decree-Law 4/2023, with urgent measures in response to the drought and climatic conditions that establishes prevention measures of occupational risks in episodes of high temperatures, incorporando specifications for places of work outdoors and in venues of work that they can not be closed.
In its Final provision article 1 it suppresses the section 5 of the annex III of the Royal Decree 486/1997 and it introduces the Only additional condition "Environmental conditions outdoors ", that it establishes that:
- it is owed to carry out the work risk assessment, that it should consider in addition to the temperature, characteristics of the task and the personal characteristics.
- preventive measures that are derived can include the ban of carrying out some tasks in the hours of more heat.
- when the State Meteorology Agency (AEMET) or Autonomous Communities issue orange level notifications or red and preventive measures are not enough, it will be compulsory to adapt conditions of the PT reducing or modifying the schedule.
This broad additional condition its application to all workplaces, included construction, transportation, agriculture, etc.