42% REDUCTION IN WORKER PRODUCTIVITY WHEN TEMPERATURE INCREASES FROM 86F TO 88F
13 April 2017
2015 UNIVERSITY RESEARCH DOCUMENTS 42% REDUCTION IN WORKER PRODUCTIVITY WHEN TEMPERATURE INCREASES FROM 86F TO 88F
Heat Stress ‘Dramatically’ Reduces Productivity, Study Finds BY LAURENCE STEVENS | APRIL 11, 2017
Research into the effects of heat stress on sugarcane workers in Kompong Cham province found that productivity was dramatically reduced as daytime temperatures soared, a troubling finding given Cambodia’s lagging labor efficiency and expected warming over the next 30 years due to climate change.
The study, based on research conducted in early 2015, found that the number of sugarcane bundles individual workers collected each day fell by 42 percent when temperatures rose by 2 degrees Celsius—down from about 35 bundles per day at 29.9 C to 20 bundles at 31.1 C—largely due to fatigue and heat exhaustion.
Kongkea Phan, dean of the science and technology faculty at Phnom Penh International University who worked on the project, warned that by 2050, the agricultural sector could incur major productivity losses due to climate change-related warming. “The findings relate to all agricultural workers,” he said. “We want to develop guidelines with the government to help workers.” Moeun Tola, head of the labor rights group Central, said that although there were no specific health guidelines for heat stress, Cambodian Labor Law compels companies to provide a safe environment for workers.
Neither the health nor labor ministries could be reached for comment on the study, which is currently undergoing peer review. (stevens@cambodiadaily.com)
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