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🇦🇹 Austria /Energy & Infrastructure

Heat Protection on Construction Sites Inadequately Implemented in 70% of Businesses

From Der Standard · () German

Translated from German, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Context piece
  • Heat protection measures are inadequately implemented in 70% of construction companies.
  • A union and the Chamber of Labour are demanding a legal right to heat-related time off, reduced working hours, and paid breaks.
  • The current system allows employers to offer 'heat-free' time off starting at 32.5 degrees Celsius, but it is voluntary.

Heat protection measures are failing to be properly implemented in a significant majority of construction companies, with 70% falling short, according to recent assessments.

Amidst a heatwave reaching up to 41 degrees Celsius, the focus intensifies on working conditions within the construction sector. While employers can voluntarily grant 'heat-free' time off when temperatures exceed 32.5 degrees Celsius, this reliance on goodwill is insufficient, according to the Chamber of Labour (AK).

The Bau-Holz (GBH) trade union is advocating for a legal entitlement to 'heat-free' days. They also call for other protective measures, such as limiting maximum working hours on hot days and ensuring paid breaks for workers. The union stresses that such protections should not depend on the discretion of individual companies, emphasizing the need for a legally mandated right to ensure worker safety during extreme heat.

Protection is not dependent on the goodwill of individual companies.

— Gewerkschaft Bau-Holz (GBH)The Bau-Holz trade union is advocating for a legal right to heat-free days, arguing that worker protection should not be left to the discretion of employers.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Der Standard in German. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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