According to SafeWork SA Executive Director Michele Patterson, heat stress is an especially real safety issue for workplaces during this time of year.
Patterson reminded employers of their lawful obligations to manage hot weather hazards and to provide a safe working environment.
“It's not just foundries and furnaces that are hot, temperatures in other workplaces such as industrial sheds can sometimes exceed 50 degrees. The risk is ever-present in open air or outdoor workplaces such as construction sites,” Patterson said.
In addition to the serious illnesses of heat stress, Patterson also stressed that working in a hot environment can affect workers’ concentration, increasing the likelihood of accidents.
SafeWork SA recommended various measures to avoid the ill-effects of heat, such as alternative job hours planning to avoid working on physically demanding tasks during the hottest parts of the day, and rotating workers who have to work in direct sunlight. It urged employers to provide shade, fresh drinking water, ventilation and UV protection for all workers.