Summer at work

Summer - real summer with lots of sun and temperatures that make you sweat - usually only happens for a few weeks a year in Germany. It might just be a short time, but both employers and employees still have to follow certain rules so that everyone gets along in the office, even when the mercury rises.

One of the biggest issues when it gets hot is the dress code. It depends on the line of work you're in, but there are some guidelines that hold in most traditional work environments like banks, law firms and administrative jobs. One of them: don't show your toes. Flip flops aren't an acceptable way to cope with the heat. In general, women have more choices when it comes to acceptable summer wear.

British callcenter employee Joey Barge experienced this unfairness when he was sent home from the office for wearing shorts. Since his female colleagues were allowed to wear skirts, he returned to work in a dress. The move inspired thousands of Twitter users - and changed his company's dresscode. Men are now allowed to wear 3/4 shorts!

Some might like it hot, but most of us suffer when temperatures get too high. In Germany, the law considers an office an unacceptable place to work when it's hotter than 35 degrees Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit). You can only leave, however, if the employer didn't take any steps to improve the situation. That doesn't necessarily mean he or she must install air conditioning...

Other measures to keep temperatures down are also acceptable. The employer can provide fans when it gets too hot. Blinds are another way to keep the office cool. In Germany, your boss is legally obligated to fight rising temperatures when it gets hotter than 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit) inside the office.

Certain employees in Germany have the right to increased protection from heat. This includes people for whom higher temperatures present a serious health risk, like pregnant or nursing women. They can insist on a lower temperature in the office and work from home if the employer doesn't comply.

Another thing employers can do to protect their staff from working in extreme temperatures is adjust the hours of the workday. To avoid the mid-day heat, they can move up the start time to early morning. Employees who are permitted to leave a too-hot office can also be asked to return to work in the late afternoon.

Not mandated by law but sure to make you popular: spring for a round of popsicles for everyone - or, if there are hundreds of employees, at least for your project team or even just your secretary. There are no employers more popular than those who come bearing ice cream.