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Urgent call to action on extreme heat.

The United Nations Secretary-General urgent call to action on extreme heat.

Watch the Call to Action on Extreme Heat!

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Heat stress at work.

5 Facts on International Labour Organization's Heat at Work Report.

Watch the panel Discussion on Heat at work!

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Ensuring safety and health at work in a changing climate.

Workers are currently facing serious health impacts from climate change-related hazards.

A staggering number of workers are already being exposed to climate changerelated hazards in the workplace, and these figures are only likely to get worse. Many of these workers lose their life following such exposures, succumbing to fatal diseases, such as cancers and cardiovascular diseases, or develop debilitating chronic conditions and disabilities. Some worker populations may be especially vulnerable to the effects of climate change and therefore may need extra protective measures, for example, agricultural workers and other outdoor workers carrying out heavy labour in hot climates.

Current OSH policies may need to be adapted and new climate change-specific policies created: As climate change hazards evolve and intensify, it may be necessary to reevaluate existing legislation or create new regulations and guidance, to ensure that workers are properly protected. OSH considerations should be mainstreamed into climate-related policies, and climate concerns should be integrated into OSH practice. Any new legislation or policies should leverage synergies with existing legislation, such as global normative instruments.

Enhanced research and a stronger evidence base are needed to guide response. At present, the scientific evidence base is extremely limited in many critical areas and what does exist is frequently focused on public health, rather than occupational health. Comprehensive, high-quality research is needed to develop and evaluate the effectiveness of preventive OSH measures in different countries and sectors.

Social dialogue is the foundation for effective OSH responses in a changing world of work. OSH policies and programmes should be coordinated among government departments, including ministries of labour and ministries of health, to ensure policy coherence. Social dialogue between governments and social partners is also needed for the development of climate change mitigation and adaptation policies, as workers and employers are best placed to take appropriate action in the workplace.

Greening practices can also bring new OSH challenges. Enterprises are playing an important role in climate change mitigation strategies, by finding ways to reduce workplace emissions and implementing sustainable work practices. Green industries and technologies are also emerging to respond to this global emergency and could help in mitigation over the long term. However, green technologies may in some cases create or amplify OSH hazards and risks, especially if the appropriate infrastructure and OSH protections have not yet been developed.

The increased political profile of the climate-health nexus Nevertheless, positive steps are being taken in the right direction. As recognition of the climate-health nexus continues to grow globally, new OSH policies are being implemented to specifically address climate change hazards. Momentum from global initiatives such as COP 28 should be harnessed to continue to raise the political profile of human health, and in particular worker health, in order to negotiate for better protections for workers at the highest levels.

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1.6 billion workers are estimated to be exposed to solar radiation.

"Climate change and safety and health at work." World Day for Safety and Health at Work 2024, April 28th.

Ultraviolet (UV) radiation is a form of non-ionizing radiation that is emitted by the sun and artificial sources, such as tanning beds.

Ozone is A molecule consisting of three oxygen atoms (O3). Most of the Earth’s ozone is in the stratosphere in what is often referred to as “the ozone layer”. Ozone is created by the interaction of diatomic oxygen (O2) with ultraviolet (UV) radiation. UV radiation splits O2 into two separate oxygen atoms that then react with another O2 molecule to form O3. Beginning in the late 1970s, scientists observed that stratospheric ozone concentrations were depleted, determined to be a result of the reaction of stratospheric ozone with industrial halogens such as CFCs and other artificial compounds. Since the ozone layer absorbs some bands of solar UV radiation, the most direct threat to human health from this depletion is an increase in skin cancers. The lowest levels of stratospheric ozone occurred in 1992–1993. Stratospheric ozone levels are now increasing, in part due to the 1987 Montreal Protocol and subsequent reductions of CFCs. Full regeneration of the ozone layer will take several decades. At ground level, ozone is formed by chemical reactions between nitrogen oxides (NOx) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the presence of sunlight. Ozone in the troposphere is considered a secondary pollutant. Commonly cited negative impacts of tropospheric ozone include distress to the human respiratory system and decreased visibility, particularly in urban areas (Armstrong 1994; UN Environment Program 1998).

Heat-related mortality is conflating deaths occurring during the warm season and deaths attributed to heat. The latest ICD-10 codes (WHO 2011b) that consider heat-related causes of death are included in T67 (effects of heat and light), which incorporates T67.0 (heatstroke and sunstroke), T67.1 (heat syncope), T67.2 (heat cramp), T67.3 (heat exhaustion, anhydrotic), T67.4 (heat exhaustion due to salt depletion), T67.5 (heat exhaustion, unspecified), T67.6 (heat fatigue, transient), T67.7 (heat oedema), T67.8 (other effects of heat and light) and T67.9 (effect of heat and light, unspecified). These have been used in recent studies; e.g. Beggs and Vaneckova (2008) but the majority of studies tend to calculate “excess mortality” (Gosling et al. 2009) from time series of all-cause mortality, or from other causes (e.g. ischemic heart disease).

A glossary for biometeorology

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26 Million persons living with chronic kidney disease attribuable to workplace heat stress worldwide.

"Climate change and safety and health at work." World Day for Safety and Health at Work 2024.

How to calculate the Index of heat stress?

First introduced by Belding and Hatch (1955) based on the fact that required evaporative heat loss (Ereq) and maximum evaporation (Emax) together incorporate all components of thermal stress. The Index of Heat Stress is calculated by the following equation: Index of Heat Stress = (Ereq/Emax) x 100 If the index of heat stress is less than 100 %, sweat evaporation can match Ereq, and body temperature can be controlled. If the index of heat stress is greater than 100 %, sweat evaporation, and cooling, is limited to Emax (Brotherhood 2008). Hence, evaporative heat cannot be lost, and heat is stored in the body, core temperature rises, and heat stress is likely. The index of heat stress differs from the heat stress index (HSI).

A glossary for biometeorology

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Annually an estimated 2.4 billion workers are exposed to excessive heat.

"Climate change and safety and health at work." World Day for Safety and Health at Work 2024.

International Organization for Standardization standards for assessing thermal environments.

ISO standards for assessing thermal environments can be divided into three categories: hot, moderate and cold (Orosa and Oliveira 2012; Parsons 2006). For hot environments, the ISO standards include: BS EN ISO 27243:1994, ISO 7243:1989 (British Standards Institution 1994; Parsons 2006) for the estimation of heat stress based on the Wet Bulb Globe Temperature (WBGT). BS EN ISO 7933:2004 (British Standards Institution 2005a) for the analytical determination and interpretation of heat stress using calculation of the predicted heat strain. BS EN ISO 9886:2004 (British Standards Institution 2004) for the evaluation of thermal strain by physiological measurements. Also applicable to cold and moderate environments. BS EN ISO 13732-1:2008 (British Standards Institution 2009b) for methods for the assessment of human responses to contact with hot surfaces. For moderate environments, the ISO standards include: BS EN ISO 7730:2005 (British Standards Institution 2006) for the analytical determination and interpretation of thermal comfort using calculation of the Predicted Mean Vote (PMV) and Predicted Percent Dissatisfied (PPD) indices and local thermal comfort criteria. BS EN ISO 10551:2001 (British Standards Institution 2002a) for the assessment of the influence of the thermal environment using subjective judgement scales. BS EN ISO 9886:2004 (British Standards Institution 2004) for the evaluation of thermal strain by physiological measurements. Also applicable to hot and cold environments. BS EN ISO 13732-2:2001 (British Standards Institution 2013) for methods for the assessment of human responses to contact with moderate temperature surfaces. For cold environments, the ISO standards include: BS EN ISO 11079:2007 (British Standards Institution 2008) for the determination and interpretation of cold stress when using required clothing insulation and local cooling effects. BS EN ISO 9886:2004 (British Standards Institution 2004) for the evaluation of thermal strain by physiological measurements. Also applicable to hot and moderate environments. BS EN ISO 13732-3:2008 (British Standards Institution 2009c) for methods for the assessment of human responses to contact with cold temperature surfaces

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Annually more than 15.000 Workers are estimated to die due to work-related exposures to parasites and vector-borne diseases.

"Climate change and safety and health at work." World Day for Safety and Health at Work 2024.

Glossary of terms For the purposes of this code of practice, the following terms have the meanings shown: Action level: a level of exposure of workers to airborne harmful substances in the working environment to be determined by the competent authority. It is distinctly below the exposure limits and consequently exposures below the action level do not usually necessitate application of all the preventive measures, for example those of a medical nature often required for exposures exceeding the action level. The action level will generally lie at or below half of the exposure limit.

Aerosol: an airborne suspension of solid or liquid particles. Allergy: a qualitative and specific change in the body’s sensitivity to a foreign substance; it implies the formation in the body of specific globulins (antibodies) against the causative substance (allergen). Asphyxiating agent (physical or chemical): substance capable of causing breathing to stop by acting on the central nervous system (e.g. a narcotic); by replacing the oxygen of inhaled air (e.g. nitrogen, methane, carbon dioxide); or by preventing the fixation of oxygen by haemoglobin (e.g. carbon monoxide, aniline); or on the cell systems (e.g. hydrocyanic acid). Carcinogen: substance or agent capable, even at low doses, of producing malignant conditions, usually several years after the onset of its action on the body; certain substances and agents have been shown to have a carcinogenic effect on man while many others must be considered suspect because they can cause cancers in animals, under experimental conditions using widely varying exposure frequencies, concentrations and time lapses. Combined effects: effects of simultaneous exposure to multiple physical, chemical or infective agents in the working environment, as is usually the case in occupational exposure; these effects may be independent of each other, or represent the aggregate effect of the same agents when considered separately (additive effects); in rare cases, they may be either stronger than the additive effects (synergistic effects), or weaker than if they had been separate (antagonistic effects). Competent authority: minister, official service or any other public authority having power to issue or approve decrees, orders, regulations or other provisions having the force of law, concerning the prevention of contamination of the working environment. Confined space: space in which the presence of a worker may be justified in exceptional cases for building, repair or maintenance work, having a volume so restricted that even uniform dispersion of contaminants released in small quantities does not always prevent the formation of a hazardous concentration in the worker’s breathing zone; special precautions have to be taken in confined spaces to prevent oxygen shortage and air contamination, even where the substances present are ones which would not be considered as harmful under normal space and ventilation conditions. Contaminant: airborne solid, liquid, fume or gaseous matter, odour, micro-organisms or any combination of them, which may in certain concentrations or quantities impair the quality of the working environment and/or health.

Contamination: the airborne pollution of the working environment by a contaminant. Cumulative effect: result of repeated exposure to a concentration of toxic substances, not necessarily with acute effects; the cumulative effect is due to the fact either that the amount excreted is less than that absorbed or that the biological effects of each exposure are additive. Dose-effect relationship: the effect that a substance may have on the body (i.e. certain biological parameters) depending on the dose absorbed; it depends on the concentration of the substance in the air inhaled and on the duration of exposure, subject to the variability of the subject himself and local conditions. Dose-response relationship: the effect that a substance may have on a group of individuals depending upon the dose absorbed; it is measured by the percentage of individuals showing an effect of a given nature and intensity. These relationships may be: (a) linear when the response is directly proportional to the dose; (b) non-linear when the response is not directly proportional to the dose; or (c) all or nothing when a dose threshold has to be reached to produce a response.

Occupational exposure to airborne substances harmful to health.

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Over 300, 000 death annually due to pesticide poisoning.

"Climate change and safety and health at work." World Day for Safety and Health at Work 2024. April 28th.

Dust: airborne solid particulate matter, the particle size being greater than that of a fume; dusts are usually produced by the mechanical erosion of a solid; they can have various biological effects (e.g. fibrogenic, toxic or a mixture of these); the concentration of an airborne dust is expressed as a weight (mg/in3) or as a number (number of particles/cm3), but for results to be comparable it is necessary to know the range of particle size: (a) fibrogenic dust: mineral dust capable of causing an increase in the connective tissue of the lung with permanent alteration of the lung structure; this increase may be nodular or irregular; the most common types are free crystalline silica (quartz and its allotropic varieties, i.e. tridymite and cristobalite, which are more dangerous than quartz itself) and asbestos; (b) inert/nuisance dust: dust which is neither toxic nor fibrogenic; it may collect in the lung without modifying its structure, but when inhaled in large quantities it can impede the functioning of the respiratory system; (c) respirable dust: that fraction of the total dust which passes through a selector having specific characteristics approaching those of the human respiratory tract; (d) total dust: all the airborne dust (i.e. without size selection) which is collected during sampling; and (e) toxic dust: dust other than fibrogenic dust usually composed of soluble or partly soluble compounds capable of having acute or chronic harmful effects on specific organs including and beyond the respiratory tract

Epidemiological study: study of the effects of various factors, including the individual’s constitution, occupational exposure, the psycho-social climate and the environment, on the aetiology, distribution, incidence and prevalence of a disease or any other specific biological or social phenomenon

Exposure limit to airborne harmful substances at the workplace: concentration in the air of a harmful substance which does not, it is believed in the light of present scientific knowledge, cause adverse health effects—including long-term effects and effects on future generations—in workers exposed for eight to ten hours per day and 40 hours per week; such exposure is considered acceptable by the competent authority which establishes the values, although concentrations below the exposure limit may not completely guarantee protection of the health of all workers; the exposure limit therefore does not constitute an absolute dividing line between harmless and harmful concentrations but merely serves as a guide for the prevention of hazards;

Exposure limit: other relevant terms: (a) ceiling: indicates a concentration in respiratory air which must not be exceeded at any time; (b) permitted excursion: amount of excursion beyond the time-weighted average which is considered permissible by the competent authority or the body responsible for exposure limits; (c) short-term exposure: indicates the highest concentration to which workers may be exposed for up to 15 minutes without suffering unbearable irritation, chronic or irreversible damage to tissues, or narcosis sufficiently pronounced to cause a risk of accidents, reduce their ability to escape in the case of need, or diminish their working efficiency, provided that they are not exposed more than a specified number of times during a day and without a specified minimum interval between two successive exposures, and provided that the average daily exposure does not exceed the time-weighted average exposure limit; and (d) time-weighted average: average time-weighted concentration which may be adopted as the exposure limit for substances whose effects are cumulative or for which there is a fairly wide safety margin between concentrations which are harmful and those which are not, provided that the exposure limit for the permitted excursions is not exceeded. Fume: aerosol of a finely divided solid, consisting of particles of less than 1μm in diameter, generally formed either by combustion in the air, which causes solid particles to be airborne (metallic oxides, ashes, soot), or by the condensation of a vapor.

Gas: state of matter characterized by the absence of specific shape and a variable volume resulting from its expansibility or compressibility; the concentration of a gas or vapor in the air is expressed either as a volume (parts per million parts of air (ppm or cm3/m3)) or by weight (milligrams per cubic meter of air (mg/m3 )) at a temperature of 250 C and a pressure of 760 mmHg; one form of expression can be converted to the other, at standard temperature and a pressure of 760 mmHg, using the following formulae:

value in ppm x molar mass/24.45 = value in mg/m3;

value in mg/m3 x 24.45/molar mass = value in ppm.

The higher the concentration of a gas or vapor in the air and its solubility in the blood and living tissues, the greater is the bodily absorption.

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Climate change impacts safety and Health at work.

Excessive heat, UV radiation, extreme weather events, air pollution, vector borne diseases, chemicals impacts worker's health. World Day of Safety and Health at Work 2024; April 28th.

Glossary of terms

Gonadotrope: a substance or agent capable of adversely affecting the sexual glands. Harmful substance: substance or mixture of substances capable of harming workers’ health or safety during employment, after employment or in later generations. Hazard: probability of impairment to health following exposure to a specific substance; the level of the hazard depends not only on the toxicity of the substance itself but also on the use and the absorption rate. Health: state of complete physical, mental and social well-being, and not merely an absence of disease or disablement. Ingestion: entry of a toxic or other substance into the body through the digestive tract; if elementary principles of personal hygiene are applied, this can occur at workplaces only rarely and accidentally. Inhalation: entry of a substance into the body through the respiratory tract. This is the main path of entry of toxic substances into the body; having reached the lung, the substances may remain stored in the lung tissue or nodes (insoluble dusts) or pass into the blood (gases and vapours, fumes, soluble dusts) through the alveolar surface and reach the upper nerve centres without undergoing any filtration; as the alveolar surface is about eight times larger than the digestive surface and 40 times greater than the skin, absorption is much faster and constitutes a greater hazard than entry by other routes. Irritant: a substance, generally in the form of gas, aerosol or dust, or agent able to cause inflammatory reactions of the respiratory tract, conjunctive tissues or skin; highly soluble gases and vapours, such as ammonia, act mainly on the upper respiratory tract; on the other hand, less soluble gases and vapours, such as nitrogen dioxide, penetrate more deeply into the respiratory tract and are more dangerous because of the associated risk of pulmonary oedema. Mist: aerosol consisting of droplets (e.g. oils or acids). Monitoring: systematic surveillance of the hazards to which workers are exposed; it may be carried out by measuring certain parameters of the working environment, particularly the concentrations of airborne toxic substances, or by measuring biological parameters, particularly the concentrations of toxic substances or their metabolites or certain organic reactions in the urine, blood or exhaled air. Mutagen: substance or agent capable of causing sudden and lasting changes in one or more hereditary features, generally by modifying one or more genes; if these changes take place only in somatic cells (e.g. the blood cells), they are not transmitted to descendants. Occupational health officer: a specialist in the problems associated with the protection of workers’ health against occupational hazards, who acts as adviser to employers and workers; he 1 For different temperatures and/or pressures, the formula must be adapted. For an ambient temperature of 200 C at standard pressure, for instance, the figure 24.45 must be replaced by 24.04. Occupational exposure to harmful airborne substances may be an occupational physician, an industrial hygienist or a safety engineer or technician, either in a service organised by the plant itself or attached to an outside body. Personal sampler: a light and compact portable instrument for sampling the air and/or carrying out measurements in the worker’s breathing zone, whatever his movements during the period of duty. Radioactive substance: any substance which emits ionizing radiations as the result of fission of its atomic nucleus; radiotoxicity is much higher than chemical toxicity and depends on the radioactivity of the substance (number of nuclear fissions per unit of time), the nature of the radiation emitted, the duration of the radioactivity (half-life) and the metabolism of the substance in the body; radioactive substances may take the form of very fine particles (particle sizes of less than 1μm).

Occupational exposure to airborne substances harmful to health

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1.6 billion workers ares estimated to work outside with presumably a large number of them exposed to air pollution

Occupational exposure to airborne substances harmful to health. Respirable fibre: any organic or mineral structure or composition with a definite length/diameter ratio which may become deposited in the lung tissue and cause harmful health effects. Safety factor: a margin of safety embodied in exposure limits during their establishment, when extrapolating to workers data obtained from research or epidemiological studies. As regards experimental data, the guiding criteria for the numerical value to be given to this factor agree to some extent for oral poisoning; allowance is made in particular for the species, weight and sex of the laboratory animal and the biological effects of the substance studied. On the other hand, in the case of experimental poisoning by inhalation, which is the most significant for establishing exposure limits, there are still many sources of uncertainty. Scientific research institute: a public or private institute or specialised laboratory attached to an undertaking. Sensitising substance: substance which can increase the sensitivity of one or more body tracts or systems to any stimulus to which they were less sensitive before exposure. Skin absorption: penetration of a toxic substance into the body either through the horny and fatty layers of the skin in the case of liposoluble substances (such as solvents) or through the hair follicles in the case of many other substances; for the purposes of occupational exposure control, the skin absorption route is considered for practical purposes when toxic effects can follow the absorption of certain substances (e.g. aniline or certain organophosphoric pesticides) merely through direct contact with the skin. Special category of worker: workers who, on account of their age (adolescents, older workers) or sex (women of childbearing age, pregnant women, nursing mothers) or physical (disabled) or other condition (e.g. enzymatic), may be more sensitive to certain harmful substances than the average worker; this does not necessarily mean that the exposure limits are not applicable to these categories of worker, but that they may not be applicable to a specific individual in one of these categories and that medical precautions are therefore necessary. Substitute material: substance which offers the same technical advantages as a specific substance, but which is harmless or less harmful. Teratogen: substance or agent capable of causing the development of post-conception deformations in utero, resulting in either abortion or the birth of a malformed offspring. Toxicity: ability of a substance to cause a reversible or irreversible disturbance of the normal physiological processes of one or more bodily systems; its effects may be asphyxiating, carcinogenic, irritant, mutagenic, radioactive, sensitizing, teratogenic, etc.; short-term toxicity tests are experiments involving the administration of the toxic substance over a period corresponding to one-tenth of the life of a laboratory animal; long-term toxicity tests are carried out throughout almost the entire life of the animal. Vapour: gaseous phase of a substance which is liquid at ordinary temperature and pressure. Vapor pressure is the pressure of the vapor in the medium containing it; the higher this vapor pressure and temperature, the more liquid can vaporise. Waste: solid or liquid residue from industrial, commercial or agricultural activities: refuse, used lubricants, rubble, empty containers, or radioactive or other scraps. Working environment: the atmosphere of workplaces, whether enclosed or in the open air; it may, in the case of those which are enclosed, be adversely affected by the movement of contaminated air from other workplaces. Workplace: place where workers responsible for carrying out or supervising a working operation are located permanently, or temporarily; when the work is performed at different places in a room, the entire room is considered as a workplace

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Protecting workers in a changing climate.

Public heath initiatives targeting workers.

Spotlight on climate change and mental health.

"Climate change and safety and health at work." World Day for Safety and Health at Work 2024. April 28th.

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Examples of awareness raising campaigns developed by social partners.

Confederation of British Industry (CBI)

The organization found that improved workplace air quality could give significant productivity benefits, in terms of reduced absenteeism due to ill-health as well as less presenteeism where employees are present at world despite being unwell.

Building and Wood Workers' International (BWI)

The campaign included organizing workplace actions in support of workers' rights to health and safety, putting poster in workplaces. Sharing message on social media to raise awareness and writing t relevant government ministries

"Climate change and safety and health at work." World Day for Safety and Health at Work 2024, April 28th.

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Examples of awareness raising initiatives.

United States: Emergency preparedness

Oman: Agrochemicals

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Examples of border initiatives.

Singapore: Dengue control programme

Australia: Skin cancer prevention programme

"Climate change and safety and health at work." World Day for Safety and Health at Work 2024, April 28th.

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Examples of diseases included the national occupational disease lists.

Case study - Malaysia, Lebanon, Latvia, Thailand, Mozambique, Singapore.

"Climate change and safety and health at work." World Day for Safety and Health at Work 2024, April 28th.

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Examples of guideline relative to air pollution.

Numerous technical guidelines have been produced by International and national OSH bodies and authorities addressing workplace hazards related to climate change. Guidelines cover topic such as sun safety, extreme weather events and water borne diseases. "Climate change and safety and health at work." World Day for Safety and Health at Work 2024, April 28th.

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Examples of technical training relative to excessive heat.

 Training programmes and awareness raising initiative "Climate change and safety and health at work." World Day for Safety and Health at Work 2024.