First, discuss everyone's personal situation. No house is the same and people differ in their heat tolerance. In addition, one employee has the financial scope to purchase an air conditioning and the other does not. Talk about someone's needs and be flexible with working hours if possible. After all, it is often still cool in the morning, so perhaps starting earlier is an option. See if a siesta is an option, after which some work is done in the evenings.
Tips for employees working from home
Tips
You can also give your employees (and yourself) the following tips:
- Keep your house closed up
Once the temperatures have been rising for a few consecutive days, the outside world heats up. Things like concrete streets, asphalt, walls, etc. Close all your windows and doors as soon as it gets warmer, lower external sun blinds and close curtains and blinds indoors. Then open up and ventilate as soon as the air cools down in the evening. - Heavy work? Do it as early as possible
Do anything that needs full concentration while you are still fresh or at least: in the morning. Plan a longer break in the afternoon, simple things and maybe some phone calls. You can also do these outdoors, in the shade. - Blow the heat away
Place a fan next to your desk (make sure you don't blow away all the sheets of paper), possibly with a box of ice cubes in front of it of some plastic bottles with frozen water. This way you blow some extra cool air into the room. - Get water to work for you
Dip your feet in a bowl of water or wrap a damp tea towel around them. A damp flannel round your neck and regularly running your wrists under (cold) water also helps to cool you down. Drink plenty, but not ice-cold drinks. Your body then focuses on warming them up and that is exactly what you do not want. - Choose a place with good ventilation
Wear loose clothing that absorbs sweat, not something tight and sweaty or synthetic clothes. Sometimes light-weight long trousers can even be better than shorts, especially if you need to go outside. A tanned skin absorbs a lot of heat. - Have a light lunch
The digestion of fat and proteins consumes a lot of energy, which you can do without. You also want to be eating food that will keep your hydration levels in balance. So enjoy a light lunch like a salad with cucumber, spinach, lettuce (water)melon, grapes or strawberries. Also drink as little as possible of any drinks containing sugar or caffeine, because these extract moisture from the body. - Treats with soup
All that sweating means that you are losing salt and minerals, which can make you feel a bit light in the head. Top up your supplies, for example with a bowl of soup. Does that sound too hot? Then maybe look at a gazpacho or another chilled soup.
What if one of your employees still feels really bad, despite all these tips? Then a day off – if work permits – is the best option. If you allow them the space to do this, then there is every chance that they will come back to work refreshed. With more energy and enjoying the work better, which makes for more productivity in the end. And the missing hours? They will have caught those up, one way or another.