After the country endured yet another heatwave this week, a doctor working for the main provider of accident insurance in Switzerland, Suva, has proposed that Swiss companies and workers adopt the siesta system. Christine Marty argued that the change to working hours should be looked at more closely as the idea would allow staff to avoid the worst of the mid-day heat.
For the uninitiated, a siesta - meaning nap in Spanish - is a short nap or rest period taken early in the afternoon after lunch, generally between 2pm and 5pm. The system allows workers to rest and relax during the hottest parts of the day, with the extra rest hours compensated for by either starting earlier or working later.
As the name suggests, siestas are most common in Spain and other Mediterranean countries where high temperatures are common, although the system has also been used in the Middle East, China and India. Now, with climate change making the weather in Switzerland hotter and hotter on average, many experts have argued that applying the same system in Swiss cities and cantons would make sense.
Speaking to Tio, occupational doctor for Suva Christine Marty argued that “we can learn from the Mediterranean countries: from the point of view of occupational medicine, we cannot avoid thinking about the siesta." She made the point that some international companies - especially in the construction industry - are already starting to lengthen their lunch breaks to avoid the hottest part of the day, meaning a quasi-siesta is already gaining popularity.
They "start a little earlier, take a longer break and resume activity later in the afternoon, in order to reduce exposure to UV rays and working in the heat,” Marty explained. She added that siestas could also improve safety, as the frequency of accidents at work increases by 7 percent when temperatures exceed 30 degrees celsius, and that of the 25.000 people that contract skin cancer every year in Switzerland, 1.000 cases are the result of working outside without the right sun protection.
While Marty didn't think that all jobs, especially those indoors, need siestas, she said it was still important to control temperatures in offices and at home: “It is known that [work] performance decreases from 26 degrees”, she noted, explaining that office workers still need to take precautions against the heat to stay productive during the summer.
When asked whether there should be a mechanism where workers are obliged to stop work if it gets too hot, Marty said that while it is up to companies and staff to decide what counts as "too hot" in work contracts, she personally thinks that “we have to be ready to react in the future. The day of absence due to the heat is the last resort if the technical, organisational and personal measures fail to prevent damage to the workers' health."
“There is still no legislation on the matter. Not even Suva can demand it, it's a political process. However, I personally think that a siesta is a good solution…The point is that everyone has an interest in keeping workers healthy. This also requires more flexibility on days when temperatures are extremely high,” she concluded.