The employer must ensure that the workplaces in which workstations are installed have sufficient thermal insulation, and that the temperature is suitable for the human body A law known as the “welfare law” of 1996, of which the implementing decrees are incorporated into the code of well-being at work. This law covers the aspects of Safety and Health at work.
Ideal temperature in the workplace
The ideal temperature is not easy to define. It depends on many factors. The General Regulations for the Protection of Work (RGPT), – article 64 of Title II – impose minimum temperatures depending on the type of indoor activity (with a humidity level between 40% and 70%):
| Rooms | Temperature |
| Rooms where people with little or no clothing are resting or exercising very light physical activity. Changing rooms, examination rooms or medical treatment. | 23 – 25 °C |
| Rooms where people dressed normally are at rest or exercising very light physical activity. Meeting or conference rooms, restaurants, offices, classrooms, waiting rooms | 21 °C |
| Rooms where people dressed normally do light physical activity. Kitchens, workshops, laboratories. | 17 °C |
| Places where poorly dressed people exercise a great deal of physical activity. Sports or gymnastics halls | 17 °C |
| Premises which only serve as a passage for people dressed normally. Corridors, toilets, halls, stairwells | 17 °C |
| Rooms only kept away from frost. Garages, archives. | 5 °C |
According to a survey conducted by the Helsinki University of Technology, it appears that employees perform better when the temperature is 22 ° C. According to another study from Cornell University in New York, the ideal temperature is 25 ° C.
One thing is certain. the optimum temperature depends on many factors:
- Summer Winter
- Environment (solar radiation, drafts, insulation)
- Clothing for each occupant
- Individual habits
- Etc.
Minimum and maximum temperature depending on the type of activity
| T° Min | T° Max | |
| Light physical workload | 16°C | 29°C |
| Average physical workload | 14°C | 26°C |
| Heavy physical workload | 12°C | 22°C |
| Very heavy physical workload | 10°C | 18°C |
Methodology: SOBANE Strategy
Discover our indoor air quality measurement sensor:
- CO2,
- Temperature,
- Humidity,
- Lumunosity.
Extract from the code of well-being at work (Belgium)
Chapitre V.– Température
Art. III.1-38.-
§ 1er. Les lieux de travail dans lesquels sont installés des postes de travail présentent une isolation thermique suffisante, compte tenu de la nature de l’activité de l’entreprise ou de l’institution.
Les fenêtres, les éclairages zénithaux et les parois vitrées sont construits de telle façon qu’un rayonnement solaire excessif du lieu de travail soit évité, compte tenu du type de travail et de la nature du lieu de travail.
§ 2. La température sur le lieu de travail est adaptée à l’organisme humain pendant le temps de travail, en tenant compte des facteurs visés à l’article V.1-1, § 1er.
§ 3. La température des locaux dans lesquels se trouvent des équipements sociaux répond à la
destination spécifique de ces locaux.