The heatwave sweeping Europe this week is raising questions about whether existing workplace protections are fit for a warming climate – prompting trade unions and health experts to call for binding EU rules to protect workers from extreme temperatures.
Large parts of Europe have recorded unusually high temperatures in the first days of summer, with heat alerts issued across several member states.
Scientists have repeatedly warned that climate change is increasing both the frequency and intensity of heatwaves, making extreme heat a growing occupational risk.
According to trade unions, climate change has become an occupational safety and health (OSH) concern, as well as a broader labour issue affecting workers across Europe.
“All three stakeholders: the governments, the employers and the workers agreed that the heat is an issue that needs to be addressed,” Andreas D. Flouris, professor of physiology at the University of Thessaly and coauthor of the report, told EUobserver on Thursday (25 June).
