- cross-posted to:
- hackernews@lemmy.bestiver.se
- cross-posted to:
- hackernews@lemmy.bestiver.se
Unions across Europe are calling on governments to introduce legislation to safeguard workers from rising temperatures, after western Europe recorded its hottest June on record.
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This is the way!
Man I wish we’d try for that here in the US too… Last week the factory hit 121F/49.4C as far as the heat index goes…
For the Unions make us strong
Is there no law for this in your state?
The law is written vague on purpose…
“All factories must maintain a reasonable temperature an humidity.”
Wtf is reasonable? Reasonable is an opinion…
121F is unreasonable
Not if you’re this guy’s boss.
Embrace Spanish culture and bring siestas to the world!
The heat makes me pass out. Necessito una siesta in the middle of the day.
I’m all for this AS LONG AS IT INCLUDES PROVISIONS FOR TEMPERATURE CONTROLLED VS NOT. An office worker where there office is consistently between 68-72f should still go to work. A construction worker, gardener, road maintenance etc where they are out in the sun should totally be covered by this.
It’s not just the workplaces, it’s the housing. I don’t want people driving to work sleep deprived after they’ve struggled to sleep in a hot bedroom all night. Especially not en masse.
Yeah. Either you have a national policy of having ACs accessible to people, or if the temps don‘t drop below 24 C at night people get off work. Seems fair to me.
Ok granted I didn’t take that into account. That’s a good point.
They probably want to go to the AC’ed office.
But there they are forced to spend their already depleted resources, unless they go to nap
I am a carpenter, I work inside moat of the time. When it was 44°c out we had AC in the work place so it was nice, but I couldn’t sleep in my 35°c apartment at night so I was a zombie the whole day. It doesn’t really work that way my dude.
When I had no AC but work did, I absolutely preferred work to home when it was hot lol
Of course, hot wave in my country is 30C, 35 tops. So far. It was never going to be lethal at least.
I was happy to be there yes but doing physical work is something else tho. Just wanted to sleep
Respectfully, fuck off with your Fahrenheits.
527.68-531.67 R, is that better?
Of all the things to be a whiney bitch about, you went with temperature conversions? Grow up, crybaby. Respectfully.
Ok I get that I should of converted…
They’re just numbers, they can’t hurt you.
If spec says 30 degrees and you make it F instead of C, it can definitely hurt a lot of folks.
Found the manager. It’s still dangerous to travel in these temps. Transportation does break down, especially so in extreme weather.
Failure, I’m not a manager. I didn’t take transportation into account since I’ve been luck to have short commutes most of my life.
In Austin, Texas we had years where temps were above 100°f for over 90 days straight. During that time, construction workers were still required to work.
EDIT: In case it was not clear. This was not meant to be a positive. Working is such temperatures is VERY hazardous to your health.
for the Unions make us strong
For all the immigration bullshit they spew, Texas Republicans are the first to look the other way when it comes to undocumented workers in the construction sector.
they like it when they have a workforce without rights that can be deported at any point. Slave labour 2.0
For Texas, substitute unemployed with undocumented workers.
You know what your life is when you are out of work; and when you do have a job, how the fear of losing it hangs over you. You are also aware what a danger the standing army of unemployed is to you when you are out on strike for better conditions. You know that strikebreakers are enlisted from the unemployed whom capitalism always keeps on hand, to help break your strike.
‘How does capitalism keep the unemployed on hand?’ you ask.
Simply by compelling you to work long hours and as hard as possible, so as to produce the greatest amount. All the modern schemes of ‘efficiency’, the Taylor and other systems of ‘economy’ and ‘rationalization’ serve only to squeeze greater profits out of the worker. It is economy in the interest of the employer only. But as concerns you, the worker, this ‘economy’ spells the greatest expenditure of your effort and energy, a fatal waste of your vitality.
It pays the employer to use up and exploit your strength and ability at the highest tension. True, it ruins your health and breaks down your nervous system, makes you a prey to illness and disease (there are even special proletarian diseases), cripples you and brings you to an early grave — but what does your boss care? Are there not thousands of unemployed waiting for your job and ready to take it the moment you are disabled or dead?
That is why it is to the profit of the capitalist to keep an army of unemployed ready at hand. It is part and parcel of the wage system, a necessary and inevitable characteristic of it.
It is in the interest of the people that there should be no unemployed, that all should have an opportunity to work and earn their living; that all should help, each according to his ability and strength, to increase the wealth of the country, so that each should be able to have a greater share of it.
But capitalism is not interested in the welfare of the people. Capitalism, as I have shown before, is interested only in profits. By employing less people and working them long hours larger profits can be made than by giving work to more people at shorter hours. That is why it is to the interest of your employer, for instance, to have 100 people work 10 hours daily rather than to employ 200 at 5 hours. He would need more room for 200 than for 100 persons — a larger factory, more tools and machinery, and so on. That is, he would require a greater investment of capital. The employment of a larger force at less hours would bring less profits, and that is why your boss will not run his factory or shop on such a plan. Which means that a system of profit-making is not compatible with considerations of humanity and the well-being of the workers. On the contrary, the harder and more ‘efficiently’ you work and the longer hours you stay at it, the better for your employer and the greater his profits.
You can therefore see that capitalism is not interested in employing all those who want and are able to work. On the contrary: a minimum of ‘hands’ and a maximum of effort is the principle and the profit of the capitalist system. This is the whole secret of all ‘rationalization’ schemes. And that is why you will find thousands of people in every capitalist country willing and anxious to work, yet unable to get employment. This army of unemployed is a constant threat to your standard of living. They are ready to take your place at lower pay, because necessity compels them to it. That is, of course, very advantageous to the boss: it is a whip in his hands constantly held over you, so you will slave hard for him and ‘behave’ yourself.
from Now and After, by Alexander Berkman, Chapter 5: Unemployment. Available to read for free here.
I recall the days of running chainsaw at 43C. I wouldnt wish that on anyone
I was an electrician in Ohio, and it goes the other way too. Drive through snow storms in freezing temperatures to go work in a building that doesn’t even have walls
In Canada most or all employees can refuse work if they legitimately and reasonable believe an aspect of their work is unsafe.
I’ve used it a couple of times over the years. The last time being the outside temperature was over 30, and the AC was broken, leading to my office being mid 20s. I felt sleepy, nauseated, and just plain too hot.
I refused to work until the AC was fixed. Although my employer and I worked out something, new AC was installed the next spring.
Merz: “work in 35C factories and I hate you!”
If it succeeds, I wonder what the provision will be for remote working. AFAIK most people in Northern Europe and the UK don’t have aircon in their homes.
AFAIK most people in Northern Europe and the UK don’t have aircon in their homes.
True, but thankfully that’s changing. Not quickly enough, but it is
refreshes tracking page for his AC for the seventh time today
Oof climate deniers/resource vampires aren’t going to like this
That’s 86 degrees Fahrenheit.
Huh, that seems a hair low…
and 32.5C [90.5°F] for low-intensity jobs
The union said employers should take steps to cool down workplaces once temperatures exceed 24C [75.2°F], with workers able to stop working if temperatures reach 30C [86°F], or 27C [80.6°F] for those doing manual labour or working outdoors.
Ah yep, this seems well thought out. I would pass it as-is. Though WBGT would be even better since it takes into account direct sunlight, wind, and humidity.
I guess you have to start low to compromise on something a bit fairer? ^^
