Head Protection in Hot Weather: Staying Safe While Keeping Cool
PPE considerations to help industrial workers mitigate the impacts of heat stress.
- By Ryan Barnes
- Aug 01, 2024
Temperatures are rising across the United States and the world on average, year after year. Summers especially are becoming hotter and hotter, accentuated by record-breaking heat waves. In fact, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), last year was the warmest year since global records began in 1850 at 1.18°C (2.12°F) above the 20th-century average of 13.9°C (57.0°F). This value is 0.15°C (0.27°F) more than the previous record set in 2016. Meanwhile, the 10 warmest years in the 174-year record have all occurred during the last decade (2014–2023). In the United States alone, last summer more than 6,500 daily heat records fell in cities and towns all across the country.
Such temperature increases are affecting the planet in strange ways; animals are changing migration patterns, plants are blooming earlier, and average annual snow coverage is shrinking. The environmental impact is being heavily documented, but what about the effect on the daily lives of workers? More specifically, what impact do rising temperatures have on people who work outdoors during the warm months, especially industrial tradespeople and construction workers?
There’s no question that construction workers and related industries across the United States are feeling the impacts of climate change and heat stress. Heat is the number one cause of weather-related death in the United States, and those working outdoors are disproportionately affected by extreme heat. As reported by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), from 2011 to 2021, there were 528 worker-related deaths in the United States due to environmental heat exposure. In the face of rising temperatures, staying cool and safe on construction sites is more crucial than ever–lives depend on it.
Thankfully, industrial tradespeople, construction workers, and their respective employers are recognizing this trend, and they are planning accordingly, including introducing new types of PPE designed to not just keep workers safe from injury, but safe from the heat. Even during the high summer months, workers must equip themselves with full PPE to ensure they are safe and compliant with their worksite’s respective standards. However, they must also find ways and methods to stay cool on the job. That is why the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) launched its Heat Illness Prevention campaign in April 2022 to educate employers and workers on heat hazards and provide resources to keep workers safe. OSHA’s message is simple yet effective, emphasizing water, rest, and shade.
This article originally appeared in the July/August 2024 issue of Occupational Health & Safety.