UN says workers’ health ‘severely impacted’ by rising heat

The increase in global temperatures has an impact always sensitive to workers’ health and productivity, the United Nations said on Friday, urging immediate action to combat the dangers of thermal stress.

Extreme heat poses growing challenges in the workplace, said United Nations health and climate agencies because they have published advice to governments, employers and health authorities to mitigate risks.

“Immediate action is necessary to tackle the impact of the worsening of thermal stress on workers around the world,” they said.

Many workers are regularly exposed to dangerous thermal conditions, said the World Health Organization and the World Meteorological Organization.

But WHO and OMO have said that the frequency and intensity of these extreme heat events had increased sharply, increasing the risks for external and interior workers.

Manual workers in sectors such as agriculture, construction and fishing are particularly affected, they said in a report.

The agencies said that workers’ productivity has dropped from two to three percent for each degree greater than 20 ° C.

Health -related risks include heat stroke, dehydration, renal dysfunction and neurological disorders.

Economic factor

“Professional thermal stress has become a global societal challenge, which is no longer limited to countries located near the equator,” said OMM’s deputy secretary general Ko Barrett.

“The protection of workers against extreme heat is not only an imperative of health but an economic necessity.”

The agencies have called for professional heat action plans, suitable for industries and specific regions.

Directives have relied on the results of the United Nations International Labor Organization (ILO), stressing that more than 2.4 billion workers are exposed to excessive heat worldwide – 71% of the world’s active population.

This results in more than 22.85 million professional injuries each year and nearly 19,000 deaths.

“Investing in effective, preventive and protective strategies would save several billion dollars in the world each year,” said Joaquim Pintado Nunes, head of safety and health at the ILO of the ILO and the work environment.

“Without a daring and coordinated action, thermal stress will become one of the most devastating professional dangers of our time, leading to a significant loss of life and productivity.”

Adapt or die

The guidelines required to focus on average and older workers, and those with chronic health problems or a lower physical form that would be more sensitive to thermal stress.

He said workers, unions, health experts and local authorities should work together to develop thermal health strategies that would then be largely supported.

He said symptoms of thermal stress were often diagnosed, people who did not recognize signs.

The latest WHO technical report and the thermal stress advice at work dates from 1969, “when the world seemed very different in terms of climate change,” said WHO Head of WHO Ruediger Krech.

“What has changed is gravity,” he said, each of the last 10 years being in the 10 hottest ever recorded.

The main director of the OMM services division Johan Stanter added: “We have to face the future of extreme heat. It is a reality for many: a case of adaptation or death.”

© 2025 AFP