HONG KONG (SE): A survey on the effects of hot weather on the health of outdoor workers revealed that many of them experienced symptoms of heat-related illness in the past two months. The Hong Kong Catholic Commission for Labour Affairs, together with Greenpeace, released the findings of their survey of street cleaning and pest control teams. At a press conference on September 14, at the commission’s secretariat in Shaukeiwan, it was revealed that over half of the workers interviewed had experienced symptoms while working in hot weather.
While heat-related deaths or illnesses can be prevented, a trade union recorded five suspected cases of sudden death due to heat stroke this year. According to the Hong Kong Observatory’s projections, based on high carbon emission scenarios, the average number of hot days in Hong Kong at the end of the century is expected to reach 112 days per year, so the risk of injury and death due to heat stroke among outdoor workers is likely to increase too.
While the government plans to start consultations on setting up related guidelines, the groups pointed out that the government should implement new occupational safety regulations for heat-related illnesses.
The two organisations interviewed 150 street cleaners and pest control workers in August and September this year to understand their working conditions and physical impacts in hot weather. Over half of the respondents reported dizziness, difficulty in breathing, headache, physical weakness, among other symptoms.
The majority of workers interviewed felt that most employers had not implemented measures to prevent heat illness during the hot weather in the past two months. More than 60 per cent said that their employers did not provide them with wide-brimmed sun hats, and 90 per cent said that their employers did not provide them with portable fans
The groups pointed out that the Occupational Safety and Health Ordinance [OSHO] of the Labour Department is an enabling ordinance that sets out general requirements. However, its subsidiary regulations do not set out specific safety standards for heat-stroke prevention. Meanwhile, government guidelines on the prevention of heat stroke at work in a hot environment and on how to make risk-assessments, which have limited legal effects, are insufficient for employers to implement assessments and measures.
The majority of workers interviewed felt that most employers had not implemented measures to prevent heat illness during the hot weather in the past two months. More than 60 per cent said that their employers did not provide them with wide-brimmed sun hats, and 90 per cent said that their employers did not provide them with portable fans. Among all the options to prevent heat illness, only “providing sufficient drinking water” was mentioned by more than half of the workers—68 per cent.
Law Pui-shan, policy research officer of the labour commission, pointed out that as the Occupational Safety and Health Regulation stipulates that employers must provide drinking water to their employees, she believes this is the main reason most employers implement this. In contrast, other measures to prevent heat-stroke are mostly ignored as they are only listed in the guidelines. “This shows the importance of legislation to protect employees from the risk of heat stroke,” she said.
Moreover, the Labour and Welfare Bureau will start consultations on revising the risk assessment guidelines related to heat stroke but does not intend to introduce additional regulations with more legal effects or include heat stroke as a work-related injury.
However, the survey found that nearly 80 per cent of the workers interviewed expected the government to make more legally binding guidelines. In addition, over 90 per cent of the workers interviewed supported the government including heat stroke and other heat-related diseases as compensable occupational diseases to protect outdoor workers.
The two organisations urged the government to better address heat illness in the Occupational Safety and Health Regulation
From 2017 to the end of June this year, the Labour Department conducted more than 140,000 inspections of workplaces with a higher risk of heat stroke, and only two prosecutions were made, one being fined only $1,400. No employers were prosecuted for violating the Occupational Safety and Health Regulation among the suspected heat stroke cases registered by the Labour Department.
While the Labour and Welfare Bureau is considering adding the Hong Kong Heat Stroke Index of the Hong Kong Observatory to the risk assessment guidelines for heat stroke, the two groups pointed out that the measure may not be helpful because, first, the guidelines have limited legal effect. Secondly, the heat stroke index is not derived from sufficient data.
The group used heat stress monitors to survey the working conditions of workers and found that the heat stress index can vary greatly even in the same area and at the same time.
A spokesperson from Greenpeace said that the current heat stress index data comes from only two meteorological stations, which can hardly reflect the actual working conditions of outdoor workers in Hong Kong, and urged the government to increase the number of heat index monitoring points.
The two organisations urged the government to better address heat illness in the Occupational Safety and Health Regulation so that employers will be obliged to provide appropriate heat protection arrangements and include heat illnesses in compensable occupational diseases.
