The Bolec.Info portal published a curious article entitled “Working Under a Sheet.” The photographs were taken by Kazimierz Marczewski. An anonymous author wrote:
Two huge banners covering several dozen windows were hung on the Municipal Office high-rise. […] Thus, officials working in rooms with covered windows will work under a sheet, which will certainly affect the higher cost of lighting the offices. It may also affect their health [...] Many believe that this is contrary to the law and may create a fire hazard.
We asked officials what it was like for them to work under the “sheet.” In the Civil Affairs Department, head Krystyna Hodowana and her employees said that the banner did not bother them at all; on the contrary, it shaded the windows from the harsh sunlight, which the inadequate blinds had previously provided little protection against.
Other municipal officials reacted similarly. In general, they complained that the building was stuffy, had no air conditioning, and that the sun was unbearably hot, so the banner was a certain relief.
In the Geodesy Department (County Office, sixth floor), one official showed us his room and the window, whose sill also held many plants serving as a natural screen. The man shrugged, pointed to the “sheet,” and said: “How would it bother me?”
On the seventh floor, the banner turned out to be an obstacle in the Promotion Department. There, officials emphasized the lack of light and worried that the rooms might be too dark in winter, when there is little sunshine. “I like it when the lights are off during the day,” said Renata Czerwińska. “I even turn them off in the corridor when someone forgets. With the banner, perhaps we will have to turn them on more often?” she added. And indeed, Renata Czerwińska’s room was the only one of all those visited that day where the light was off.
Other County Office officials working on that floor shared a similar opinion about the banner blocking sunlight. Some even mentioned possible hazards. “It is not known what this banner is made of,” worried Krzysztof Krzemiński, an employee of the Promotion Department. “Maybe it is rubber and something will start being released?”
The one banner hung on the Municipal Office—not two banners, as Bolec.Info incorrectly reported—is assessed differently. It protects municipal officials from the sun, while blocking County Office officials’ access to natural sunlight. Is it possible that one’s point of view depends on where one works?
Below is a statement sent to us by Agnieszka Gergont, the city spokesperson.
Installing an advertisement on the Municipal Office building on Piłsudskiego Street did not require consultation with employees or their representatives. The opinion of an occupational health and safety expert states that installing the advertising fabric does not change the lighting conditions in the rooms.
The advertisement allows the windows to be opened and remains visible from the workrooms. Its light transmittance is 32.5%. The advertising material is a highly durable polyester mesh, flame-retardant to M2/B1. The material is intended to ensure the safety of the façade, the surrounding area, and people staying near the façade.
The banners may not release toxic substances that negatively affect the environment or endanger the health of people working inside the building, as confirmed by the relevant certificate.
The material used to make the advertisement on the office building has parameters consistent with the occupational health and safety expert’s opinion. The opinion is an attachment to the construction design for installing the advertising board and device, approved by the County Office in Bolesławiec.
The advertisement is addressed to the residents of Bolesławiec and tourists staying in the city. All costs related to the production, installation, and dismantling of the banners are borne by the sponsor.”
If the officials’ health is not at risk, and the banner is harmless and appears useful, another question arises: what prompted Bolec.info and Kazimierz Marczewski to show such great concern for the officials? And why does the anonymous author on Bolec.Info include in the report the claim that “many people” consider covering buildings with large-format advertisements unlawful?
(information: GH)