Effects of Heat Stress on Construction Labor Productivity in Hong Kong: A Case Study of Rebar Workers

Yi, Wen; Chan, Albert P.C.

doi:10.3390/ijerph14091055

Cited by 108 publications

(94 citation statements)

References 40 publications

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“…At actual worksites, these recommendations are not always followed (Maiti, 2008;Xiang et al, 2015), and observed worktime reductions associated with increased heat exposure (Yi & Chan, 2017) are generally smaller than those of the recommendations presented herein. First, the labor capacity is calculated based on recommendations intended to prevent occupational heat-related illness.…”

Section: 1029/2018ef000883mentioning

confidence: 66%

“…First, the labor capacity is calculated based on recommendations intended to prevent occupational heat-related illness. At actual worksites, these recommendations are not always followed (Maiti, 2008;Xiang et al, 2015), and observed worktime reductions associated with increased heat exposure (Yi & Chan, 2017) are generally smaller than those of the recommendations presented herein. Therefore, the changes in GDP calculated in the present study would be greater than that in a real economy.…”

Section: 1029/2018ef000883mentioning

confidence: 66%

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Limited Role of Working Time Shift in Offsetting the Increasing Occupational‐Health Cost of Heat Exposure

et al. 2018

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Climate change increases workers' exposure to heat stress. To prevent heat-related illnesses, according to occupational-health recommendations, labor capacity must be reduced. However, this preventive measure is expected to be costly, and the costs are likely to rise as the scale and scope of climate change impacts increase over time. Shifting the start of the working day to earlier in the morning could be an effective adaptation measure for avoiding the impacts of labor capacity reduction. However, the plausibility and efficacy of such an intervention have never been quantitatively assessed. Here we investigate whether working time shifts can offset the economic impacts of labor capacity reduction due to climate change. Incorporating a temporally (1 hr) and spatially (0.5°× 0.5°) high-resolution heat exposure index into an integrated assessment model, we calculated the working time shift necessary to offset labor capacity reduction and economic loss under hypothetical with-and without-realistic-adaptation scenarios. The results of a normative scenario analysis indicated that a global average shift of 5.7 (4.0-6.1) hours is required, assuming extreme climate conditions in the 2090s. Although a realistic (<3 hr) shift nearly halves the economic cost, a substantial cost corresponding to 1.6% (1.0-2.4%) of global total gross domestic product is expected to remain. In contrast, if stringent climate-change mitigation is achieved, a realistic shift limits the remaining cost to 0.14% (0.12-0.47%) of global total gross domestic product. Although shifting working time is shown to be effective as an adaptation measure, climate-change mitigation remains indispensable to minimize the impact.Plain Language Summary Outdoor workers are exposed to excessive heat stress particularly in hot seasons and its impact is expected to increase as a result of climate change. This will reduce the capability of labor and eventually cause economic loss. Shifting working time to earlier morning, when it is cooler than during midday, can be an effective way to reduce the effect of heat stress. In this study, we investigated the effectiveness and plausibility of a working time shift as an adaptation measure to climate change. Although a working time shift was shown to be effective to reduce the effect of heat stress, the required amount of shift was beyond the realistic range unless stringent climate-change mitigation was achieved. If society tries to avoid the economic impacts of climate change on outdoor labor only by working time shifts, outdoor workers in many regions will need to start working well before dawn. Climate-change mitigation and other adaptation measures (e.g., mechanization of work, body cooling, etc.) are also inevitable to minimize the impact of climate change.

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Section: 1029/2018ef000883mentioning

confidence: 66%

Section: 1029/2018ef000883mentioning

confidence: 66%

Limited Role of Working Time Shift in Offsetting the Increasing Occupational‐Health Cost of Heat Exposure

et al. 2018

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“…Although our model deliberately excluded days characterized by significant rain and/or snow, it should also kept in mind that construction industry usually clusters its activities from March to October, in particular for tasks necessarily performed outdoors. As CWs often perform a large share of their daily tasks on unstable, irregular surfaces, we could assume such figures as a consequence of the deliberate avoiding of more dangerous tasks, in particular those performed on scaffolds and platforms, either as a shift towards safer activities or as a forced rest until a significant improvement of the weather (30,31,39,47). Similarly, as in our study the rates of OIs in subjects ≥50 year-old were somehow unaffected by extreme temperatures, we may understand such better performances as a kind of "healthy worker effect", i.e.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Association between air temperatures and occupational injuries: a case-crossover analysis using workers’ compensation claims data in the construction industries in Northern Italy

Riccò¹,

Vezzosi²,

Balzarini³

et al. 2018

European Journal of Public Health

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Background and Aims: The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between high air temperatures and occupational injuries (OIs) occurred in construction workers (.e. 3 or more consecutive days with Tmax > 35°C). Daily average temperatures (Tday) were then categorized in 7 exposure groups (<5th, 5-9th, 10-24th, 25-74th, 75-89th, 90-94th and ≥ 95th percentiles). The risk of OIs was assessed as odds ratio (OR) calculated through a Poisson regression model. Results: Estimated incidence of OIs during the study period was 6.2 ± 3.1 events/day (2.8 injuries / 10,000 workers / day). The peak of OIs occurred during Heat-Wave time period (OR 1.200, 95%CI 1.104-1.304) on Summer days (OR 1.093, 95%CI 1.42-1.146) and in days characterized by Tday > 95th percentile (OR = 1.142,. Colder days were seemingly associated with a protective effect (OR 0.892, and OR 0.854, for Tday < 5th percentile). Younger age groups were associated with increased risk for higher exposures. Conclusions: Presented findings recommend policymakers to develop appropriate procedures and guidelines, in particular aimed to improve the compliance of younger CWs towards severe-hot daily temperatures.

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“…[7,8] They are known as contributors to social inequalities in accidents, health and mortality. [7,[9][10][11] One example of worker who works with heat exposure is a construction worker. Exposure to solar radiation is quite a lot on this type of work because they always work outdoor.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Acclimatization, Water Intake Adequacy Rate, Individual Characteristics and Heat Strain: A Cross-Sectional Study on Heat Exposed Workers

2018

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Someone will have a greater risk of experiencing heat strains if working at a workplace exposed to heat. In addition to the heat from the body's metabolic results and the result of heat exposure from the work environment, heat strain on workers also influenced by individual factors. The extent to which an individual's body can tolerate heat exposure is determined by the condition of his body. Physiological changes will occur in the body of workers who exposed to heat. The objective of this study was to analyse factors related to heat strain such as acclimatization, water intake adequacy rate, and individual characteristics. The research was an observational analytic study and study design that used was cross-sectional. The population chosen as the research subject was workers who were exposed to heat. Purposively 57 construction workers were selected as subjects. To prove the relationship between acclimatization, water intake adequacy rate, and individual characteristics with heat strain, it used chi square statistical test. Physiological Strain Index (PSI) used to assess heat strain event on workers. The results of outdoor WBGT measurements at the study site showed that the average of WBGT outdoor was 31.11 o C. Heat strain with high index experienced by the majority of workers as much as 82.5%. Result of statistical analysis showed the significance of each variable was acclimatization (p<0.05), water intake adequacy rate (p<0.05), alcohol and drug consumption (p>0.05), health status (p>0.05), body mass index (p<0.05), age (p>0.05), and work period (p>0.05). This study showed that there was a significant relationship between heat strain with acclimatization, water intake adequacy rate and body mass index. The relationship is evidenced by the results of bivariate analysis. However, there was no association between consumption of alcohol or drugs, health status, work period, and age with heat strain.

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Effects of Heat Stress on Construction Labor Productivity in Hong Kong: A Case Study of Rebar Workers

Cited by 108 publications

References 40 publications

Limited Role of Working Time Shift in Offsetting the Increasing Occupational‐Health Cost of Heat Exposure

Limited Role of Working Time Shift in Offsetting the Increasing Occupational‐Health Cost of Heat Exposure

Association between air temperatures and occupational injuries: a case-crossover analysis using workers’ compensation claims data in the construction industries in Northern Italy

Acclimatization, Water Intake Adequacy Rate, Individual Characteristics and Heat Strain: A Cross-Sectional Study on Heat Exposed Workers

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