GENEVA – Rising global temperatures are having an ever-worsening impact on the health and productivity of workers, the United Nations said Friday, urging immediate action to tackle the dangers of heat stress.
Extreme heat is posing growing challenges in the workplace, the UN’s health and climate agencies said, as they issued guidance for governments, employers and health authorities to mitigate the risks.
“Immediate action is needed to address the worsening impact of heat stress on workers worldwide,” they said.
Many workers are regularly exposed to dangerous heat conditions, the World Health Organization and the World Meteorological Organization said.
But the WHO and WMO said the frequency and intensity of those extreme heat events had risen sharply, increasing the risks for both outdoor and indoor workers alike.
Manual workers in sectors such as agriculture, construction and fisheries are particularly hard hit, they said in a report.
The agencies said worker productivity dropped by two to three percent for every degree above 20C.
The related health risks include heatstroke, dehydration, kidney dysfunction, and neurological disorders.
“Occupational heat stress has become a global societal challenge, which is no longer confined to countries located close to the Equator,” said WMO Deputy Secretary-General Ko Barrett.
“Protection of workers from extreme heat is not just a health imperative but an economic necessity.”
