Employers want the regulations on maximum workplace temperatures to be suspended
The Lewiatan Confederation has sent a letter to Agnieszka Dziemianowicz-Bąk, Minister for Family, Labour and Social Policy, requiring entry into force of the regulation amending health and safety at work to be suspended and for a public debate on the matter. The organisation wants urgent work to be undertaken to amend the content of the regulation, citing the need for a broader discussion with society and a thorough assessment of the effect on the economy.
Under the regulation of 9 July 2026, which is due to come into force on 11 January 2027, employers will be required to ensure that the temperature in workplaces does not exceed 35°C, and for manual labour outdoors – does not exceed 32°C, unless technological considerations prevent that.
Employers point to the scale of the organisational and financial implications of implementing the regulations (in some companies, these are estimated at several million zlotys) and to interpretative uncertainties regarding key terms in the regulation, such as ‘technological considerations’ and the rules for measuring temperature.