Related Posts
More Posts
Alvarez & Marsal. How does one get a job there?
Hi Fishes, I recently joined Pwc AC and was informed to update my checkpoint portfolio where we update all our investments. If we have some investments and if we do not declare them, will it be a problem or can I update it as Nothing to report. Recently I joined here so I'm having some confusion regarding this.
Bowl Leader
Is firm travel back up to pre covid levels?
Additional Posts in Retail & Hospitality
Has anyone worked for IKEA FOOD?
New to Fishbowl?
Download the Fishbowl app to
unlock all discussions on Fishbowl.
unlock all discussions on Fishbowl.
Chief
I don’t know if it’s illegal. I’ve worked in some sweltering warehouses and construction sites. Fans or water access may be a requirement as well as more frequent breaks. Need to check your states laws.
It does not illegal. I stated the Florida laws regarding this in a prior reply to somebody else I’m here. Yes it does suck especially in the State Of Florida where we are with warmer weather more than we are with colder weather, but unfortunately, that is the way it is. They are not required to go above and beyond and trust me most employers won’t go that extra mile to provide cold drinks or any type of Relief. They think you should be thankful for having a job and getting a paycheck. 
Air conditioning, or the lack there of, is generally not considered a condition of employment. Life happens. Sometimes you just have to deal with it. Hope you survive without suffering too much trauma.
In the state of Florida it’s not required that air conditioning is provided in the place of employment. I stated to Florida laws and about OSHA down below replying again to the poster who keeps going on that it is illegal. There’s nothing illegal about it. Unfortunately, in the state of Florida where we are hot 98% of the time & AC should be required it’s not. The only one way I see that’s ever being changed is for many people that are in places that don’t currently have any AC whatsoever or on working AC unit as for people to start flooding the governor and whoever else here in the State Of Florida with letters, mandating it to be something that needs to be in place by a certain timeframe or they be fined. Otherwise we here as employees in Florida we’ll have to continue to deal with working in buildings with broken AC units or no AC units at all. Only way to get around this is move out of Florida and pray wherever you go. The place of Unemployment has working AC or heat depending on where you’re at, lol .
Well here’s the thing the restaurant has to remain open to make the money to pay for repairs.Just like equipment breaks, AC & other things break too.UnfortunatelyI just experienced the same thing with my job & at the same time the AC in my house went. So talk about zero relief for me except my drive to & from work. Our customers did complain to the health department about the fact that our store was unbearably hot & probably some employees do too. The health department can come out & inspect the building is found too hot they’re going to give the company only a certain amount of time to fix it or they will shut the store down. You may not want to be the person directly involved in calling the health department on your job because I could lead to termination. I don’t know if it’s illegal or not because each state has their own laws besides federal laws . Hopefully your employer gets the ac fixed soon.
Again not sure where you’re getting your information from. The health department is not in the habit of telling you who complained just what the complaint or complaints were that’s it. Here in Florida we just went through this one the ac broke in one of our locations. Even the health department stated exactly what I already knew that it’s not illegal. You have to think as well how long ago certain buildings were built. If a building is considered historic you can’t make certain changes to the building without jumping through hoops. Also if the building was with ac prior to break down depending on what needs to be fixed repairs can take weeks,like in our case, because it depends on approval from the higher ups or corporate offices. Also it depends if the repair company has the parts in stock, if it’s a whole unit that they have it. Since most commercial buildings ac is on the roof they also have to hire & get a permit for a crane to lift it onto the roof. All the extra factors causes delays. Is it comfortable for the employees meanwhile unfortunately no, are the alternatives to handle the situation meanwhile yes but it all breaks down to what the company can afford or approved by city/ county what they can do. Again retaliation is unfair but again that information is not supposed to be disclosed to the business.
The restaurant could install could install commercial solar shades on the windows to block 95% of the UV rays and reduce heat. That would lesson the load on the AC. Yes a much larger AC with a higher BTU's should be used. The size of the restaurant and especially the cooking area of the restaurant needs to be accounted for too. There probably are codes to keep the humidity and the temperature at certain levels. At home install black out curtains with the white side of the curtain facing out and the dark side facing inside.
No he can't make you work in those unsafe conditions as number One An OSHA Violation making employment come to work in unsafe conditions and Two Failure to maintain the Workplace including failure to get an All New HVAC Unit so not only can you not be forced to work in those unsafe conditions but also if people are getting sick then your employer will have more than one legal matter to resolve
Soooo what about folks that work outside? It’s not illegal to work in a building with no air. And each employee has the right to not come to work and accept the consequences. If there’s individual health concerns, those should be addressed but everyone that has ever worked in a kitchen for any length of time knows that the air is GOING to break, just a matter of when each season. Still gotta run the business that pays the bills…and payroll.
Look. ACs and other things break. if you shut the store down you don't make the money to make the repairs. The AC is broke in my kitchen right now. its unbelievably hot. but the company has ordered the parts and even though it takes a couple of weeks to get them in, you kind of just have to deal with it. it sucks but it will get better. Not if its not fixed/worked on by August, come back and blast them.
They should bring in floor fans for the kitchen.
Depending on where you live, there are laws for it. The state I live in just passed a law but it is not yet in effect. Where I worked previously, our company followed an 80° rule in terms of emergency repairs and working temporary AC units. You can report unsafe working conditions if the heat index/WBGT reach a dangerous level regardless of where you live, multiple employees are becoming sick enough to have to go home (whether they’re being allowed to or not—*especially* if they’re not being allowed to, that’s a whole other issue) or becoming seriously ill from heat illnesses, and/or if an employee with medical conditions is being forced to attend their shifts when the HI is too high for their safety. This link gives you a slight idea of where this reporting allowance comes from: https://www.hseblog.com/workplace-temperature-laws/
Oh, maybe you thought I was party and event host 1?? I’m a different one.
Not sure if its illegal but I know ive definitely been there before. Broken a/c, and exhaust hoods went out. It hit 140 in front of the fryers. One of the worst yet also most satisfying shifts ive had.
Rising Star
Those type of conditions are exactly why I found other avenues of work and went to a larger company.
All that matters is food safety when it comes to refrigeration. They don’t care whether you’re cool or not. Call in sick!
The company should provide the right working conditions!!!!!!!
Buy something suitable fan for yourself and then use it till they fix the problem 😕 if nothing else....
Um, "They brought in a portable AC unit..." And, associates "got sick"? At least they brought in a portable AC unit, so they know they have a fix is needed. Associates "got sick" and called off? Ok, sure. Not the best situation, but you showed you were reliable and helped the store continue to bring in revenue. Maybe "some days are better than others", in places where conditions can be extreme?
People work in 110-120F all the time. You have the option to find another job.
And there are pay differentials and frequent required breaks in place in such positions. Working in a restaurant provides neither. The fact remains, it is deemed unsafe by OSHA 🤷🏻♂️
Yeah, unfortunately as many have stated, its not illegal. OSHA is more worried about a rolling trash can sort of blocking a sink and such. Temperatures do not matter, nor does the given ability to deal with those temperatures. You can see if your company has its own rules that could be something, maybe, probably not, but you can try. While there are some valid reasons for the store being open and running to afford to pay for things to be fixed, its important to keep documentation of complaints/concerns, how YOU handled them and who you talked to about said things. Implementing a frequent break system (in my store when this happens, every 30min the cooks go sit down for 5min in a COOL area, not the fridge or freezer as this can cause problems, encourage water and sports drinks, idealy also cool, not cold. These COOL and not COLD are key as you can cause illness with temperature spikes and cause light headedness and fainting in some cases. Nausea and vomiting can also be caused by extreme temp changes.) Scheduling and accounting for breaks is also important, I know for me, I can make it work in the mornings mostly by myself and 1 other person, allowing me to schedule more people during the rushes to better allow the extra breaks, especially during hotter days. Make sure you set temp range rules and have a hear stress thermometer to help make clear the danger zones, plans and implementation of said plans to avoid people from abusing it, while making sure the team is cared for.
I work at a hotel. Last week the hotel had to shut the power off because of a connecting restaurant that’s building there. The construction worker told me that he advised the manager to rent a generator for the day to power up the hotel.
He didn‘t do that. We had to climb the stairs, up and down to clean the rooms just the same. I had to go on 4 floors. Management didn’t even think to bring in all the housekeepers, give us less rooms, one flirt, and made us go home early. They didn’t even provide water.
No he can’t by law and FDA it has to temp at least 68 to 70 degrees in BOH call the Health department and they will make him close due to safety reasons
CHEF MARK