Austria's construction heat‑protection to become mandatory tender criterion, says GBH union

The Austrian construction workers' union GBH (Gewerkschaft Bau‑Holz) is urging that heat‑protection measures be written into every public construction contract as a fixed award criterion. The union points to the 2026 amendment of the Federal Procurement Act, which now permits social and environmental criteria, allowing contracting authorities to give preference to firms that provide drinking water, adequate shading, flexible working hours or apply the official BUAK heat‑free rule. "Wer einen Bauauftrag vergibt, entscheidet auch darüber, wie auf dieser Baustelle gearbeitet wird," the union’s national chair emphasized.

GBH argues that municipalities, states and the federal government, which allocate billions of euros in construction projects each year, must protect workers from increasingly frequent heat waves. The call also extends to private contractors, and the union promotes its free “Heat‑App,” which shows real‑time temperatures by postcode to alert when the 32.5 °C threshold for mandatory heat‑free days is reached.