• Swindon & Wiltshire Experts
• Thursday July 9 2026
• Author Name: Amber Ballans

Heatwaves at work – your rights and responsibilities

What are employees’ rights and employers’ responsibilities during a heatwave? Amber Ballans of law firm Goughs explains.

Every summer seems to bring at least one spell of extreme heat, and I’m increasingly asked the same question: can employers really expect people to work through it? The short answer is yes – but it’s not a free pass.

There’s no legal maximum working temperature in the UK. That surprises a lot of people. The law doesn’t draw a hard line where work must stop just because it’s “too hot”. B

ut that doesn’t mean employers can ignore the issue.

I always come back to the core duty under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974: employers must ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare of their staff.

Excessive heat is part of that.

The Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992 add another layer, requiring indoor workplace temperatures to be “reasonable”.

Again, no upper limit—but a clear expectation that employers actively manage conditions. In practice, that means risk assessments. And not just a tick-box exercise. I expect to see employers factoring in temperature, ventilation, hydration and the physical demands of the role, then reviewing those assessments as conditions change.

People often look for a benchmark, but there isn’t a one-size-fits-all answer. What’s reasonable in an air-conditioned office won’t be the same on a construction site. That’s why the focus is always on context and evidence. If the risk assessment is up to date and acted upon, employers are on firmer ground.

So what does good practice look like? Simple, practical steps: improving airflow with fans or air conditioning where possible, shifting working hours to avoid peak heat, easing physically demanding tasks, allowing more breaks, relaxing dress codes and making sure there’s access to drinking water. Not every measure will be feasible in every setting, and the law recognises that. “Reasonable” depends on resources and the nature of the work.

From the employee side, there are protections—but also limits. Workers can raise health and safety concerns and are protected from being penalised for doing so. Refusing to work is a different matter.

That right only kicks in where there’s a reasonable belief of serious and imminent danger, which is a high bar.

Feeling uncomfortable in hot weather won’t usually meet it. In most cases, the sensible first step is to raise concerns internally and give the employer a chance to respond.

Where I think employers need to be especially sharp is with vulnerable workers. Pregnant employees, older staff, those with underlying health conditions, or anyone required to wear PPE can be at greater risk in high temperatures.

That should be clearly reflected in risk assessments, alongside any obligations under the Equality Act 2010 where reasonable adjustments may be required.

Heatwaves are no longer rare events. In my view, employers who treat them as unexpected disruptions are already behind.

The expectation now is a proactive approach—planned, documented and responsive to real-world conditions.

Amber Ballans is an employment law solicitor at Goughs