By Siobhann Provost Human Resources Manager & Content Writer

Our employees can't agree on a comfortable temperature in our workplace. What are our obligations if some employees complain that it is too cold?

In this situation, the office is open-plan, with some desks positioned near north-east-facing windows that allow sunlight to stream in. The employees with window seats are pretty happy with the office temperature. However, those who don’t sit near windows have complained that the air conditioning is too cold. Several employees report feeling uncomfortably cold, with cold hands and feet.

What are this company’s obligations? Can they instruct those employees to endure the cold and wear coats and gloves?

 

First, consider how serious the health and safety risk is

Temperature variations are expected within a larger work area, especially if renovations or alterations to the fit-out result in changes to ventilation and airflow. Working environment issues often boil down to the severity of the health or safety risk and what is reasonably practicable.

Employers have a duty to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that workers exposed to extremes of heat or cold can carry out their work without risk to their health or safety (reg 40 of the Work Health and Safety Regulations).

Working environments that are cold enough to present risks to health or safety are usually considered in terms of work in refrigerated premises, such as food storage facilities, or outdoor work in winter. In such conditions, hypothermia may occur if a person’s body temperature drops to an abnormally low level due to exposure to cold environments. 

It seems unlikely that temperatures in a general workspace in an indoor office environment would be low enough to pose a comparable threat or even result in more minor symptoms such as chilblains.

 

Conduct a risk assessment

A risk assessment will help determine the severity of your cold-related problems. Some of the risk factors that need to be considered include the source of the cold, the nature of the work undertaken in the cold area, the duration of exposure to the cold, the physical condition and capability of the workers, whether they are wearing warm clothing, and past experience of problems arising from work in cold environments.

It is often difficult to find a temperature setting that all workers will find comfortable. The recommended range is 22 to 26 degrees Celsius, with an airflow rate of 0.1 metres per second and humidity levels between 40% and 60%.

The perceived temperature inside will also depend on the outside temperature. For example, if it is 35 degrees outside, an office space with a temperature of 22 degrees may seem too cold.

Seasonal acclimatisation can also play a part.

As the employer, taking all reasonable steps to ensure workers are comfortable is necessary.  

Reasonably practicable means whatever can reasonably be managed, taking into account:

  • The likelihood that workers’ health or safety will be harmed,
  • The seriousness of the potential harm,
  • What the employer knows or needs to know about minimising the risk,
  • The availability and suitability of measures to eliminate or minimise the risk, and
  • The cost associated with the possible risk control measures.

It may help to control airflow and drafts. Localised heating may also be appropriate. If measures such as these are not reasonably practicable, workers should be encouraged to wear adequate clothing when working in the cooler area.