‘Maximum functional temperature for working must be established’

(ANSA) – ROME, JUL 22 – The temporary lay-off fund must be made available immediately to all production sectors where extreme heat puts workers’ lives at risk, the leader of Italy’s biggest trade union confederation CGIL Maurizio Landini said on Saturday.
“We are saying something very precise: that provisions must be made immediately so that the temporary lay-off fund can be used in all sectors as a tool when there are not the conditions to work because the heat puts people’s lives at risk,” said Landini.
The union leader also called for a measure “to establish the temperature beyond which it is not possible to continue working” so that decisions are “not arbitrary”.
On Thursday employers’ associations and trade unions representatives met at the labour ministry to discuss measures to tackle the health and safety risks associated with working in the extreme heatwaves that Italy is enduring.
“We are closely following the evolution of weather conditions in Italy and their impact on the working and production contexts: health and safety in the workplace is a priority,” said Labour Minister Marina Calderone.
(ANSA).