Heat stress effects and interventions to protect workers

Climate change is progressing faster and faster every year, and it affects every aspect of our lives. Extreme weather events such as severe storms or intense, long-lasting heatwaves are becoming more frequent. For example, the number of extremely hot days (> 30 C) and tropical nights (> 20 C) per year has doubled compared to the past 30 years. Working under prolonged heat stress can result in both short-term and long-term health consequences, including heat stroke, cardiovascular problems, kidney damage due to dehydration and increased susceptibility to sun damage on the skin. The heat also affects our mental state and behaviour: Those who are exposed to heat stress at work for long periods of time become exhausted and less able to concentrate, which increases the risk of accidents at work. If the heat persists into the night, this can lead to sleep problems and less restful sleep. If these aggravated conditions are combined with pressure to perform at work, stress and mental strain can arise. This project investigates the physical and mental effects of heatwaves on workers in three essential and physically demanding occupations: Construction workers, nursing staff, and food delivery workers. The main aim of the project is to find and test ways in which the work processes in these occupations can be adapted to reduce the impact of heat stress on employees and thus maintain both health and performance. The project is divided into three phases: 1. understanding heat stress, 2. finding ways to adapt, 3. trialling and co-evaluating. In phase 1, a variety of physiological and psychological measures will be taken from the workers for two time-periods, each spanning multiple days one before, and one during a heatwave. Measures will include questions about their mental state (e.g. stress levels, worries about the effects of the heat on their bodies and work performance, ability to concentrate) and physical measures (pulse, heart rate variability) as well as measures of the working environment (temperature, humidity and perceived temperature). Thus, the key stress factors for each occupational group are determined. In phase 2, surveys will be conducted in two countries that have already been affected by heatwaves for some time (Malaysia, Dominican Republic) in order to find out how the three occupational groups in question deal with the heat there and whether there are strategies that could be transferred to the Austrian context. Subsequently, a working group will be organised with each participating company, in which employees and employers will discuss the results from phase 1 together, with scientific support, and then work out ways of adapting work processes. The group and the scientific support team jointly agree on selected strategies to be implemented in phase 3 and on evaluation criteria - criteria by which a measure is assessed as successful or unsuccessful. The results of the evaluation are reported back to all those involved. The measures are also communicated to the outside world together with the practice partners in such a way that other companies can also implement them for themselves.