In the summer period, such measures include the introduction of an extraordinary break and the provision of a protective drink if the conditions laid down in the Labour Safety Law are met.

According to the Labour Safety Law, if it is technically impossible to provide a workplace with an adequate quantity and quality of air or climate that is not harmful to health:

- appropriate organisational measures must be taken to protect the health of employees,

- personal protective equipment must be used,

- protective clothing and personal protective equipment must be provided.

At outdoor workplaces, the protection of workers against heat must be ensured by technical solutions, work organisation, personal protection, rest facilities and protective equipment appropriate to the nature of the work and the working conditions.

If the Joint Decree of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Family Affairs and the Ministry of Health No. 3/2002 (8.II.) (hereinafter referred to as Decree") states that the climate at the workplace exceeds 24 °C, or the daily average temperature at an outdoor workplace exceeds 25 °C for at least one day, and the national medical officer has issued a warning or a heat alert due to the heat, health protection devices must be used, protective drinks must be provided and occupational safety training must be given.

Provision of special rest periods

If the workplace temperature develops as described above, the Regulation requires employers to provide, and employees to take, at least 5 minutes and maximum 10 minutes of extraordinary rest per hour as part of the working time.

The employer must ensure, by appropriate work organization that regular rest periods in such a way that workers can spend them in a cooler environment, preferably in a place where they can sit down comfortably.

This rest period is not the same as the break between work. Inter-working break is not normally part of working time no remuneration is due for the duration of the break. This duration is not the same as the rest period to be granted after the completion of the work obligation.

During this extraordinary period, the employee is exempted from the obligation to work. When the employee is taking his compulsory rest period because of the exceptional heat, his work obligation does not increase with this duration. If the employer orders the work to be done during the working time lost as a result, the work in excess of the scheduled working time is considered as working during the extraordinary working time and is therefore entitled to an allowance according to the law.

Providing protective drink

As an additional measure, if the climate in the workplace exceeds the limit values defined in the above Regulation, the employer must provide drinking water (bottled, balloon or mineral water) or flavoured, non-alcoholic drinks at a temperature of 14-16°C according to the demand, but at least every half hour for the employees. The sugar content of the drink, if it is not flavoured with artificial sweeteners, shall not exceed 4 % by weight.

Taxation of drinks provided to employees

According to the Personal Income Tax Act, benefits provided by an employer to employees in accordance with the provisions of the Labour Safety Law, which meet the conditions of work that do not endanger health, are not taxable income. In addition, protective equipment and health protection equipment provided as a non-monetary benefit are also exempt from tax.

If the drink provided to the employees qualifies as a protective drink due to the workplace conditions and based on the above legal regulations, its provision is tax-free, so neither the employer nor the employee has an obligation to pay personal income tax.

If the benefit does not meet the requirements of a protective drink defined by the Labour Safety Law, such as energy drink, juice, coffee, etc., or ice cream, ice cream, other chilled food, it will not be tax-free but will be considered a specific benefit. The employer must assess, declare and pay 15% personal income tax and 13% social contribution tax on 1.18 times the benefit.

Under the law on value added tax, input tax on drinks is not deductible. The Act does not contain a specific exemption rule for protective drinks, so beverage provided to employees, whether or not they are protective drinks, are not subject to tax deduction. The taxable amount also includes the incidental costs incurred, so that, for example, VAT on the hire of a water dispenser and the cost of plastic cups cannot be deducted either.

For corporation tax purposes, the cost of the drink provided is an eligible expense. If the protective drink provided to employees is based on legal regulations, the cost of the protective drink may be accounted for as a material cost. However, if the drink provided to employees does not comply with the requirements of the Labour Safety Law, the cost of the drink is included in other payments of a personal nature.