The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is urging employers to do their part in protecting construction workers during the high temperatures this summer. Carry on reading for top tips and advice on how to protect your employees and colleagues.
What are the symptoms of heatstroke?
Before we delve into the advice given by HSE, it is important you and your employees know what heatstroke looks like. Symptoms include:
Confusion
Dizziness
Heat rash or change in skin colour
Excessive thirst
Rapid heartbeat
Fast breathing
Nausea/vomiting
Feeling weak
Cramps in arms, legs and stomach
Remind your team that if anyone is displaying signs of heatstroke, they need to be moved to a cool area, given lots of fluids and removed from any unnecessary clothing such as PPE.
What advice has HSE issued to mitigate the risk of extreme heat on construction sites?
Make sure windows can be opened/closed to reduce build-up of hot air
Insulate hot pipes and equipment
Providing drinking water that is easily accessible
Weather-friendly PPE or more casual dress code
Blinds on-site to provide shade
Locating worksites away from direct sunlight
More flexible working to avoid the hottest times of the day
HSE’s head of operational strategy, John Rowe, said: “Last summer should have been a wakeup call for all employers. Climate change means we’re likely to get hotter summers and that could have a big impact on the workforce of this country, affecting everything from health of workers to productivity on construction sites.
“We know all employers are under pressure and we don’t want to add to their burden, but it’s vital they think hard now about simple and cheap measures they can put in place to support workers should we see extreme heat again this summer.
“The extreme heat we experienced in 2022 isn’t going away so sensible, supportive employers will be planning now how they should respond.”
HSE’s hot weather working guidance can be found in full here.
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