Cold and snow: in what cases can an employee exercise the right to dismiss?

The cold wave that has gripped France since Monday has brought its share of difficulties. In addition to roads covered in snow and ice, several schools had to send students home due to a lack of heating. In Aubervilliers (Seine-Saint-Denis), employees even exercised their right to leave on Monday morning at the college, while “the temperature in the rooms at 8 a.m. was 10°C.”

Le Parisien explains in which cases you can exercise the right of withdrawal due to too cold weather.

“Serious and immediate danger to his life or health”

The right to leave is the right of an employee to refuse to take up his position if he believes that “the work situation in which he finds himself poses a serious and immediate danger to his life or health,” the Service’s website explains. Audience.

Therefore, bad weather alone is not enough to justify stopping work; bad weather must pose a risk to the worker. For those who work in offices in this weather, “a heating shutdown or breakdown can legitimize it,” Nina Tarhouni, an occupational safety and health expert, explains to Parisian. Working in a place that is too cold can, for example, lead to discomfort or hypothermia.

The Labor Code does not provide for a specific temperature below which you cannot work. Article R4223-13 only requires that “the heating be operated so as to maintain a suitable temperature. » The 2006 Afnor standards set the temperature depending on the work situation: in offices it is about 20 degrees, and in the case of work with constant physical activity it drops to a minimum of 14°C. But these standards are only indicative; the employer is not obliged to comply with them.

The right of refusal may also apply to outdoor workers. For example, “in the case of extreme cold, if they don’t have gloves or appropriate clothing,” states Me Corinne Metzger, an employment lawyer. Or for people who would take to the road if driving in the snow “became too dangerous.”

Until the end of the dangerous situation

Recalls that the employee must notify his employer if he decides to exercise his right of withdrawal, preferably in writing. He can use it until “the dangerous situation ends,” Service Public explains. And during this period of downtime, “the employer must maintain wages.” However, “if the conditions of the statutory right of severance are not met, the employee may be subject to a deduction from his or her wages,” it adds.

Nina Tarhouni emphasizes that it can be considered that since the worker is not a safety specialist, there is room for error, “he could in good faith believe that he was exposed to danger.”

For the self-employed the situation is more complicated. For example, bike delivery workers “may stay home” in bad weather, “but they don’t make any money,” explains Fabian Tosolini, project manager for Union Indépendants, an organization representing independent delivery drivers. “We have already seen couriers working during floods,” he laments.

“Real work needs to be done on this issue,” the spokesperson adds, calling for these workplaces to be provided with shelters during extreme weather conditions. Several cities in France, including Paris, have already launched a similar initiative.