Barcelona will only suspend pedestrian cleaning services when temperatures exceed 40 degrees Celsius.
City Hall and concessionaires agree to implement protocols earlier and provide more rest and water to workers.
BarcelonaMore rest and less sun exposure. Under these two premises, Barcelona will modify the protocols used by City Hall cleaning service workers in response to high temperatures. This was announced by the First Deputy Mayor, Laia Bonet, after meeting this Wednesday with representatives of the four companies that have been awarded the service in the city: FCC, CLD, Valoriza, and Urbaser. The meeting follows the death on Saturday night of a service worker, who collapsed upon arriving home after spending the entire afternoon working in the heat wave.
To start with, the first decision agreed upon by the City Council and the companies at this meeting is to tighten the protocols. Measures that until now were reserved for orange alert situations—from 37 degrees—will now begin to be applied when temperatures reach 34 degrees, the yellow alert. Thus, during the hours of greatest sun exposure—between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m.—Barcelona's cleaning service workers will be entitled to a five-minute break every hour.
Bonet also explained that the routes taken by workers on foot will be modified to facilitate their work in shadier areas during the sunniest hours and avoid those most exposed to the heat. In addition, he said, all companies will be required to provide their workers with a one-liter insulated water bottle. All of this, without ruling out future changes to the uniform—one of the workers' main complaints—to make it more "breathable."
These are all measures that already existed in the protocols of some of the concessionary companies, but which all are now adopting. Bonet said that what they have done is "incorporate the best practices of each protocol" into a new one that governs the four companies in charge of cleaning services in the city.
Another request the workers had made was that their work be restricted during the hottest hours. The City Council and the companies reached an agreement this Wednesday, but only in specific cases and when temperatures are very extreme. Bonet explained that if temperatures exceed 40 degrees—and, therefore, a red alert is entered—the service for workers who travel on foot will be suspended between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m.
However, the opposition as a whole has requested Bonet's urgent appearance. BComú, Junts, ERC, and PP believe the causes have not yet been clarified and believe that "the municipal government has not yet provided clear explanations."
Other measures in Europe
The heat wave is ravaging southern Europe, and other cities have also taken measures to protect workers and the population. In Italy, half of the regions have banned outdoor work during the hottest hours, between 12:30 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. In France, access to more than 1,896 schools across the country has been completely or partially closed, and in Paris, the top of the Eiffel Tower has also been closed to tourists.