Consequences of repeated heat waves in the world of work
Roofers work on the roof of a house in the middle of a heat wave, on June 16, 2022 in Haux, France.
© AFP/Romain Perrocheau
Text by: RFI Follow
2 mins
It will be hot, very hot in Europe this week of July 11.
These heat episodes, linked to climate change, are increasing, affecting workers in particular.
A report by the European Trade Union Institute reveals that no member country has yet taken the real measure of the impact of rising temperatures on the health, safety, well-being and productivity of the European working population .
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With our correspondent in Brussels,
Jean-Jacques Héry
In the workplace, we know the most visible effects, it is the famous "heat stroke".
Sunstroke or dehydration that most often affects professions that require working in the open air.
The report by the European Trade Union Institute first estimates that over the years, more and more professions will be subject to heat stress as heat waves increase.
Bicycle deliverers, for example, or professions that require the wearing of protective equipment, which is difficult to bear when it is 38 degrees.
Moreover, it says, repeated heat will increase the effects of certain cardiovascular and respiratory diseases.
Immediate consequence: a drop in productivity because, obviously, the exposed workers will have to take multiple breaks.
For all these reasons, public authorities and companies must become aware of the lasting changes underway and legislation must be introduced to respond to them, explains the author of the report, Claudia Narocki.
She is a sociologist, specialist in working conditions and their effects on health: "
Policies against heat stress must take an interest (and adapt) to the intensity of work, but the most important thing is to ensure that businesses prepare for worker protection.
There must be a specific framework to deal with these problems.
Companies must be ready to continue to guarantee health and safety at work
”.
And the sociologist concludes: “
I risk repeating myself, but these heat waves are no longer exceptional, it will start again, we know it, so we have to adapt to it
”.
There is available in pdf and informs in castellano "Los episodios de altas temperaturas como riesgo laboral" by @ETUI_org and the @fundacion1mayo in the web of @ISTASCCOO: https://t.co/PBWC4QNXF1 pic.twitter.com/N0uwfOtDH7
— Salud Laboral CCOO (@SaludLab_CCOO) June 13, 2022
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To read also: Climate: intense heat waves expected in France and western Europe
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