Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he has taken to ensure that employers comply with legislation and guidance on controlling excessively high temperatures in the workplace.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and Local Authorities regulate workplaces to assess compliance with health & safety legislation. They also investigate complaints about working conditions, including excessive high (or low) temperatures. HSE targets its interventions on workplaces in higher risk sectors that include foundries and bakeries where high temperatures can be a concern. Inspectors can take enforcement action to improve conditions where they find problems.

There is extensive guidance on the HSE website on this topic, including heat stress, and the practical steps that employers can take to manage risk. HSE is also simplifying this guidance to make it easier to use by small and medium sized enterprises. Guidance on various aspects of excessive high or low temperatures in the workplace can be found at:

http://www.hse.gov.uk/temperature/index.htm