{"id":36548,"date":"2023-04-18T10:02:38","date_gmt":"2023-04-18T08:02:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/obera.fr\/advice\/how-does-the-french-labour-code-require-workplaces-to-be-refreshed\/"},"modified":"2025-04-23T09:13:09","modified_gmt":"2025-04-23T07:13:09","slug":"code-du-travail-et-canicule-lobligation-de-rafraichir-les-locaux","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/obera.fr\/en\/our-tips\/code-du-travail-et-canicule-lobligation-de-rafraichir-les-locaux\/","title":{"rendered":"How does the French Labour Code require workplaces to be refreshed?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>With climate change,<strong> France is experiencing more intense and more frequent heatwaves<\/strong>. According to M\u00e9t\u00e9o France, before 1989, France endured an average of 1.7 days of heat waves per year. In the last decade, the figure has risen to 9.4 days. M\u00e9t\u00e9o France predicts that heatwaves will double by 2050.   <\/p>\n\n<p>These periods of intense heat generate <strong>abnormally high temperatures<\/strong> and present a health risk for workers. Risks of dehydration, exhaustion, heatstroke&#8230; These risks can become apparent from the very first days of heat. <\/p>\n\n<p>The French <strong>Labor Code<\/strong> stipulates that the employer must take the necessary measures to ensure the safety and <a href=\"https:\/\/obera.fr\/en\/our-tips\/qualite-de-lair-etablissements-de-sante\/\">protect the health of workers<\/a> with regard to temperature rises. These measures concern : <\/p>\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>the <strong>installation of ventilation<\/strong> in compliance with regulations (Article R4222-1 of the French Labour Code).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>providing employees <\/strong>with protection against extreme heat.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Free fresh water.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<p>The employer adapts these measures by referring to <strong>M\u00e9t\u00e9o France&#8217;s meteorological vigilance <\/strong>system, which warns of heat waves posing a health risk. This system is characterized by temperature thresholds, by department, which must not be exceeded. <\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"500\" height=\"500\" src=\"https:\/\/obera.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/france_ete-1.png\" alt=\"france ete 1\" class=\"wp-image-23220\" style=\"width:375px;height:375px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/obera.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/france_ete-1.png 500w, https:\/\/obera.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/france_ete-1-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/obera.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/france_ete-1-150x150.png 150w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n<p><strong>Blue alert:<\/strong> <strong>peak of <\/strong>intense <strong>heat <\/strong>over 1 or 2 days exceeding the threshold, or <strong>persistent episode of heat<\/strong> (more than 3 days) with temperatures close to the departmental threshold. These events present a health risk for workers overexposed to heat in environments such as dye works, laundries, kitchens, foundries, etc. Setting up mobile coolers near overexposed workers is a quick and effective solution.  <\/p>\n\n<p><strong>Orange alert:<\/strong> <strong>heatwave<\/strong> lasting 3 consecutive days and nights, exceeding minimum and maximum thresholds. Here again, the quick and effective solution is a <a href=\"https:\/\/obera.fr\/en\/our-advice\/mobile-adiabatic-air-coolers-a-flexible-practical-solution-for-industrial-applications\/\">mobile adiabatic cooler<\/a> for workers exposed to heat as a result of their physical activity, or the thermal environment at work. <\/p>\n\n<p><strong>Red alert:<\/strong> <strong>extreme heatwave. <\/strong>Exceptional heatwave in terms of duration and intensity, with aggravating factors having a major impact on the health of all types of employees, and leading to possible collateral effects in terms of business continuity.<\/p>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-28f84493 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:50%\">\n<p>A red alert automatically generates regulatory obligations. The employer must reassess the risks to workers on a daily basis, taking into account: changes in temperature during the day, the nature of the work, and the age and state of health of employees. Should the employer fail to comply, the employee may refer the matter to the Labour Inspectorate or the Social and Economic Committee, or exercise his or her right of withdrawal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In the event of a red alert,<strong>employers need to<\/strong> react quickly. Air cooler rental is the answer to this problem. The higher the temperature, the more effective the cooler. In the event of a red alert, the cooler must have a sufficiently high airflow to maintain a comfortable temperature. In addition, several coolers can be rented to combat extreme heatwaves.    <\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:50%\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe title=\"Rafraichisseur d&#039;air - Gamme IC - OberA\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/NG-Ssy2oM70?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-content-justification-center is-layout-flex wp-container-core-buttons-is-layout-a89b3969 wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/obera.fr\/en\/contact\/\">NEED PERSONALIZED ADVICE?<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>With climate change, France is experiencing more intense and more frequent periods of heat. According to M\u00e9t\u00e9o France, prior to 1989, France endured an average of 1.7 days of heat waves per year. In the last decade, it suffered 9.4 days. M\u00e9t\u00e9o France predicts that heat waves will double by 2050.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":85445,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_titles_title":"Does the Labour Code require refreshments at work?","_seopress_titles_desc":"Under the French Labor Code, employers are required to provide cooling in the event of a heatwave. Find out about the measures you need to put in place.","_seopress_robots_index":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[309],"tags":[18],"class_list":["post-36548","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-our-tips","tag-entete-small","generate-columns","tablet-grid-50","mobile-grid-100","grid-parent","grid-50","no-featured-image-padding","resize-featured-image"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/obera.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36548","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/obera.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/obera.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/obera.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/obera.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36548"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/obera.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36548\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":86136,"href":"https:\/\/obera.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36548\/revisions\/86136"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/obera.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/85445"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/obera.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36548"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/obera.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36548"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/obera.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36548"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}