Billions of workers worldwide need better protection from extreme heat in the workplace as climate change makes sweltering conditions more frequent, a new joint report by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the World Meteorological Organisation has found.
The report says that billions of people are already exposed to dangerous heat at work, increasing their risk to heat-related illness such as heat stroke, dehydration and kidney disease.
More than 2.4 billion workers are exposed to excessive heat, representing 71% of the world's total working population.
The report's authors said its findings should serve as a warning to take action.
Measures are needed at the level of local community, in businesses, institutions and schools, it said. Employers are also responsible for ensuring work conditions are safe and hazard-free.
"We must face up to the future of extreme heat. It's a reality for many. A case of adapt or die," Johan Stander from WMO said.
According to estimates from the International Labour Organisation, extreme heat leads to more than 22 million occupational injuries every year and almost 19,000 fatalities.
"Severity means not only more days of heat, but also higher temperatures. And very often it's considered as discomfort, something you have to deal with. But that is a health crisis," the WHO's Director for Environment, Climate Change and Migration, Rüdiger Krech, said.
Often, it is workers "keeping our societies running" that are paying the highest price, Krech said. Work-related heat stress impacts vulnerable communities with limited access to cooling, healthcare and protective labour policies more severely.
The cause is more critical as frequent heatwaves across the world are becoming a new reality.
This summer, exceptionally high temperatures were recorded across Europe, with countries such as France, Portugal, Greece and Spain regularly reaching 40C.
Soaring temperatures have triggered devastating fires across southern Europe, with Spain and Portugal observing one of their most severe wildfire seasons on record.
