Second: Proposal to amend the scope and the period of prohibition to work contained in the Ministry of Labor and Social Development Decision No. (3) of 2013 regarding outdoor midday work ban 4. Driven by the NIHR’s competence to examine human rights legislation and regulations in force in the Kingdom and to recommend the amendments it deems appropriate, or recommend the issuance of new legislation related to human rights, the NIHR has taken the initiative to provide its advisory opinion on Decision No. (3) of 2013 of the Ministry of Labor and Social Development regarding the ban of outdoor work at noon time, where Article (1) thereof stipulates that, “it is prohibited to employ workers, whose nature of work requires being under the sun and in open places, during the period between twelve noon and four in the afternoon during the months of July and August of each year”. 5. The NIHR believes that, considering the high temperatures in the Kingdom of Bahrain during the months (June-September) of each year, workers may be exposed to the risks of heat stroke (sunstroke) and falls resulting from heat stress. 6. The NIHR concluded that the competent authorities should reconsider the text of the Decision under study and extend the midday work ban period, under direct sunlight and in open places, to be two and a half months in each Gregorian year, starting from mid-June to the end of August, or three months of each Gregorian year, starting from mid-June until mid-September, or starting from the beginning of June until the end of August. 7. Whereas, the ban period is four daytime hours: from twelve noon to four in the afternoon (as is the case now), or for five daytime hours, starting at eleven in the morning and ending at four in the afternoon. 8. It is also advisable to adopt the work/rest cycle or reschedule work to cooler times in the evening shift, as the case may be and according to the exigencies of work, if it is necessary to work under direct sunlight; and to relocate work indoors in shaded places with no direct sunlight(12). (12) This proposal is briefly addressed in Section Three on Noticeable achievement of the National Institution for Human Rights in the field of human rights protection during ten years, contained in Chapter I: the Tenth Anniversary of the Establishment of the National Institution for Human Rights. It is also addressed when tackling the protection of expatriate workers, in Chapter IV of this report; thus, some information and data might be repeated, which is an intended repetition in the context of the relevant chapter; therefore it is necessary to note. 62