Global warming is predicted to cause an increase in work-related heat stress that can damage productivity and result in significant job and economic losses, the International Labor Organization (ILO) said in a press release on Monday
WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 01st July, 2019) Global warming is predicted to cause an increase in work-related heat stress that can damage productivity and result in significant job and economic losses, the International Labor Organization (ILO) said in a press release on Monday."Projections based on a global temperature rise of 1.5C by the end of this century suggest that in 2030, 2.2 per cent of total working hours worldwide will be lost because of higher temperatures, a loss equivalent to 80 million full-time jobs. This is equivalent to global economic losses of US$2,400 billion," the release said.
The ILO called its prediction a conservative estimate because its report assumes the rise in global mean temperature will not exceed 1.5 degrees Celsius. The report also assumes that work in agriculture and construction - two industries most affected by heat stress - will be carried out in the shade.
According to the ILO, the sector expected to suffer the brunt of the impact will be agriculture given that 940 million people around the world work in the agricultural sector.
"It is projected to account for 60 per cent of global working hours lost due to heat stress by the year 2030," the report said.
Work-related heat stress will also disproportionately affect people in the world's poorest regions, as they have fewer resources to adapt to the increase in heat levels.
The ILO defines heat stress as heat in excess of what the human body can tolerate without suffering physiological impairment. It generally occurs at temperatures above 35 degrees Celsius and in high humidity, the report said.
