Impact of Occupational Heat Stress on Worker Productivity and Economic Cost

Details

• Personal Author:
  Brewer GJ ; Casa DJ ; Morrissey MC ; Quinn T ; Williams WJ
• Description:
  Heat stress is a growing concern in the occupational setting as it endangers worker health, safety, and productivity. Heat-related reductions in physical work capacity and missed workdays directly and indirectly cause productivity losses and may substantially affect the economic wellbeing of the organization. This review highlights the physiological, physical, psychological, and financial harms of heat stress on worker productivity and proposes strategies to quantify heat-related productivity losses. Heat stress produces a vicious-cycle feedback loop that result in adverse outcomes on worker health, safety, and productivity. We propose a theoretical model for implementing an occupational heat safety plan that disrupts this loop, preventing heat-related productivity losses while improving worker health and safety. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Economics Environmental Exposure Heat Stress Disorders Hot Temperature Mental Health Occupational Health Risk Assessment Risk Factors Safety Workplace
• Keywords:
  Author Keywords: Heat Stress Exposure Levels Health Effects Heat Exposure Heat Stress Occupational Productivity Physiological Effects Psychological Effects Risk Factors Work Environment Worker Health Workers Worker Safety

  More +
• ISSN:
  0271-3586
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Connecticut ; OSHA Region 1 ; OSHA Region 3 ; Pennsylvania
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  NPPTL - National Personal Protective Technology Laboratory
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  64
• Issue:
  12
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20063703
• Citation:
  Am J Ind Med 2021 Dec; 64(12):981-988
• Contact Point Address:
  Margaret C. Morrissey, Department of Kinesiology, Korey Stringer Institute,University of Connecticut, 2095 Hillside Rd., U-1110, Storrs, CT 06269, USA
• Email:
  Margaret.morrissey@uconn.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2022
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Source Full Name:
  American Journal of Industrial Medicine
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:72dc0a4450d027171ad757e070905c4deecc1a2e2e3f15b703460f236c314b23f3c19579210b9a60d29f2ca9e817ecd95392d6c85ad22d36f14e1d9543a6d507
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/222264/cdc_222264_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.26 MB ]