102,000 letters
The searing heat that opened the summer across Spain has sparked the country’s first broad interim work stoppage in the Inspection and Social Security system. The strike spans the nation in protest of noncompliance with improvements agreed in 2021, complicating oversight of the Labor Department’s decree issued last May. The decree sets mandatory working hours to prevent heat stroke, with the Ministry led by Yolanda Díaz signaling that essential services must be maintained and investigators should be present where needed. Earlier this week a 47-year-old man with preexisting health issues died of heat stroke in a rural area near Aznalcóllar, Seville, as confirmed by the Andalusian Health Department.
The decree, effective since last May, asks companies to implement regulatory measures intended to prevent heat-related accidents. Each company designates a union representative to contest any inspection for noncompliance. The rule requires inspectors to appear within 24 hours and to impose penalties ranging from 6,000 to one million euros, or even halt operations entirely. Unions acknowledge that the strike has reduced workforce numbers, yet it has emphasized the enforcement of the executive order.
According to the State Meteorological Service (Aemet), the decree addresses actions during heat waves flagged by red or orange alerts. The affected regions include Seville, Cordoba, Jaén, with some areas of Extremadura and Castilla-La Mancha also involved. This week, a Sumar candidate and the Minister of Labor are meeting with climate activists, scientists, and workers affected by the heat.
Jose de MorenaUGT Aragón, Secretary for Union and Industrial Policy, was among the union representatives who helped negotiate the decree and now advocates mandatory measures during orange or red heat alerts. A key emphasis is reorganizing the workday to avoid the peak heat windows. He notes that these are preventive steps designed to reduce exposure and, in extreme cases, may pause activity. Last year, Spain recorded six heat-related deaths, with more than eleven workers suffering serious consequences. The first notable event of July involved a delivery worker and the second a Madrid municipal cleaning employee. The measures include practical and organizational changes such as scheduling, clothing adapted for heat, light colors and breathable fabrics, and ensuring hydration with fresh water and sun protection throughout the day. Employers bear responsibility for implementing these measures, but when compliance falters, the Labor Inspectorate must intervene immediately, sometimes even prompting adjustments to municipal regulations and scheduling for certain projects.
The ministry distributed more than 102,000 letters this year across sectors that involve outdoor work, including agriculture, construction, waste collection, delivery, and hospitality, with Andalusia alone receiving over 23,000 notices. The ministry also emphasizes that inspections did not wait for heat waves to trigger action, receiving over 4,000 service requests to date.
Two sectors have long incorporated heat safety through collective agreements. In agriculture, a nationwide agreement enforces a seven-hour workday from seven in the morning to two in the afternoon to avoid the hottest hours. In construction, long-standing practices established by unions and employers have created a benchmark for compliant behavior. The Seville construction and industry sector, which helped inaugurate the first nationwide agreement in 2000, notes that the current compliance level is high, though it has required effort and vigilance to maintain. Recent years have seen a shift toward stricter schedules during peak heat, with similar patterns spreading to other Andalusian provinces.
As daylight saving rules settled this week, regions like Seville, Granada, Jaén, and Córdoba adopt the same hours, with Cadiz and Almería set to follow on specific dates. In Huelva, the collective agreement has been active since mid-June and will extend into late summer in various areas. The overall effect is that tens of thousands of construction workers across Andalusia will benefit from these revised hours and safety measures.
Experts and union leaders acknowledge that historic coalitions have driven the acceptance of heat safety rules. Castro, secretary of the construction and industry sector for UGT Seville, recalls a hard-won path that included significant sacrifices. He remembers that last year in Seville, thousands of workers registered complaints, a small fraction of total workers, and that some violations now persist primarily in service industries where the new regulation is still taking root. A spokesperson for UGT Seville notes that larger construction firms are aligning with the new schedules, while smaller micro-companies with only a handful of workers occasionally fall short.
On-site inspections have begun in line with twenty years of practice, and industry leaders say companies are increasingly aware of the need to protect workers during peak heat hours. The unions highlight that, even in a year marked by high heat and occupational risks, proactive measures – including scheduling adjustments and worker education – remain essential. Castro adds that despite progress, more work remains to improve heat-related risk prevention across Seville and beyond, especially given data showing elevated fatalities in construction during past summers. The emphasis now is on consistent enforcement and a continued commitment to protecting workers as heat waves become more frequent.