A red extreme heat warning is now in place for parts of central/southern England and Wales across Wednesday and Thursday. This joins existing amber heat warnings which are in place until the end of Thursday 25 June.

In an industry that works predominantly outside, what can employers put in place to keep their staff safe and what can staff do to keep themselves and colleagues safe? 

Outdoor workers can spend many hours exposed to UV radiation and increasingly high temperatures, yet protection is often inconsistent. Melanoma Fund stresses that sun and heat protection should be viewed as workforce welfare and health and safety issues, rather than lifestyle choices. 

Melanoma Fund offers a few practical measures employers and managers can take, including:

• Encouraging sunscreen application before shifts begin and reapplication throughout the day
• Making sunscreen readily available at the point of need
• Providing access to shade during breaks where possible
• Ensuring workers stay hydrated and take appropriate rest breaks during periods of extreme heat
• Including sun and heat protection within toolbox talks and daily briefings
• Encouraging the use of suitable clothing, hats and sunglasses
• Raising awareness of early signs of heat-related illness and skin cancer 

The National Trust is sharing the below advice with its staff and volunteers: 

• Rearrange outdoor and/or physically demanding planned tasks to take place on a different days – maybe swap outdoor and indoor tasks according to the weather forecast?
• Make sure plenty of breaks have been included into the day's routine
• Schedule activities to take place at the coolest parts of the working day
• Ensure outdoor staff and volunteers have sufficient access to drinks, shade, protective sun cream etc.
• Consider whether there are any staff or volunteers who may be particularly susceptible to extreme heat because of age, disability or general health
• Relax any uniform/branded clothing requirements if these involve dark colours or heavy materials. PPE requirements must not be relaxed, so any tasks involving heavy PPE should be rescheduled to a cooler day where possible
• Make sure all staff and volunteers can recognise the early signs of heat stress – both in themselves and their colleagues

In it's guidance for working outdoors in hot conditions, The British Association of Landscape Industries (BALI) states:

The macho culture associated with some work scenarios, where admitting discomfort is seen as a sign of weaknesses or laziness, should be carefully monitored by supervisory staff. Whilst workers may refuse to admit to their supervisors there is an issue with working in extremes of heat, it is up to the supervisor to enforce breaks and ensure the health of operatives is monitored.

Read the guidance here.

Michelle Baker, CEO of Melanoma Fund says:

“One of the challenges we frequently see is that awareness is not the problem. Most outdoor workers understand that UV exposure can be harmful. The challenge is translating that knowledge into consistent day-to-day behaviours. 

“The most effective organisations build sun and heat protection into everyday working practices in the same way they manage other occupational risks.

“Most outdoor workers would never consider working without a hard hat, high-visibility clothing or protective footwear, yet many spend entire days exposed to UV radiation without adequate protection. In many workplaces, sun protection remains the missing PPE.

“As our summers become hotter and periods of high UV exposure become more common, employers have an increasingly important role to play in helping protect the health and wellbeing of outdoor workers.

“To help address this, the Melanoma Fund has developed Sunguarding® Workplaces, a practical framework designed to help organisations improve sun and heat protection behaviours through training, toolbox talks, communication materials, UV Safety Stations and workplace guidance. The aim is to help employers move beyond awareness, embed sun, and heat protection into everyday working practices.”

Find out more about Sunguarding® Workplaces here.

Recognising the signs of heat exhaustion and heatstroke

According to the NHS the symptoms of heat exhaustion include: 

• Tiredness
• Dizziness
• Headache
• Feeling sick (nausea) or being sick (vomiting)
• Excessive sweating and skin becoming pale and clammy (a change in skin colour can be harder to see on brown or black skin)
• Cramps in the arms, legs and stomach
• A high temperature
• Being very thirsty
• Feeling irritable

If someone has heat exhaustion, the NHS advises following these 4 steps: 

1. Move them to a cool place
2. Remove all unnecessary clothing like a jacket or socks
3. Give them plenty of water to drink – you can also give them an isotonic sports drink or oral rehydration powder that you mix with water, which will help replace salt lost through sweating
4. Cool their skin – spray or sponge them with cool water and fan them. Cold packs, wrapped in a cloth and put under the armpits or on the neck are good too

They should start to cool down and feel better within 30 minutes. 

According to the NHS the symptoms of heatstroke include: 

• A very high temperature
• Hot skin without sweating
• Fast breathing and a fast heartbeat
• Confusion and restlessness
• Seizure (fit)
• Loss of consciousness

The NHS states that heatstroke is a medical emergency and that medical help should be called for.