Abstract
Occupational heat exposure threatens the health of a worker not only when heat illness occurs but also when a worker’s performance and work capacity is impaired. Occupational contexts that involve hot and humid climatic conditions, heavy physical workloads and/or protective clothing create a strenuous and potentially dangerous thermal load for a worker. There are recognized heat prevention strategies and international thermal ergonomic standards to protect the worker. However, such standards have been developed largely in temperate western settings, and their validity and relevance is questionable for some geographical, cultural and socioeconomic contexts where the risk of excessive heat exposure can be high. There is evidence from low- and middle-income tropical countries that excessive heat exposure remains a significant issue for occupational health. Workers in these countries are likely to be at high risk of excessive heat exposure as they are densely populated, have large informal work sectors and are expected to experience substantial increases in temperature due to global climate change. The aim of this paper is to discuss current and future ergonomic risks associated with working in the heat as well as potential methods for maintaining the health and productivity of workers, particularly those most vulnerable to excessive heat exposure.
Highlights
Heat stress causes discomfort, increases physiological strain [1,2], decreases productivity and performance [3] and can increase accident rates [4] (Figure 1)
The paper provides a summary of several issues: (a) the dangers associated with excessive occupational heat exposure, (b) mandatory protection or exposure to occupational heat, (c) self-regulated protection or exposure to occupational heat, (d) international standards concerning occupational heat stress and the applicability and relevance of such standards, (e) how workers and workplaces might adapt to reduce the impacts of excessive heat exposure and (f ) as well as provide suggestions and future directions for practice and research
Occupational heat exposure threatens the health of a worker when heat illness occurs and when productivity is undermined
Summary
Increases physiological strain [1,2], decreases productivity and performance [3] and can increase accident rates [4] (Figure 1). The general working population is increasingly less fit, older, with a higher prevalence of chronic disease and medication use Such a combination of personal risk factors reduce thermal tolerance of the average worker and increase their susceptibility to heat-related illness, on a global scale. Self-regulated protection or exposure to occupational heat Self-pacing and rest breaks are autonomous safeguards intuitively activated to manage thermally stressful conditions and reduce heat strain [47,48,49] Such actions attenuate increases in internal body temperature, reduce fatigue, maximize long-term endurance and enable sustained activity over the workday [49,50,51]. We must remind ourselves that some workers and populations around the world live in increasing hot environments with little respite or relief
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