A survey released today (August 29) by Oxfam, a social welfare organization, found that some employers did not follow the requirements of the Labour Department's guidelines in hot weather, suggesting that the government should provide outdoor workers with a high temperature allowance and set a standard for work stoppage in hot weather to reduce the risk of heat stroke.
This summer's high temperature has broken a number of historical records in HK, with outdoor workers suffering.
Oxfam took on-site measurements at a number of Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) refuse collection points from June to July this year and interviewed about 200 cleaners of FEHD to investigate their working conditions in hot weather.
The survey found that the average temperature of the FEHD refuse collection points reached 32 degrees Celsius, which was higher than the outdoor temperature at that time, and more than 65% of the respondents reflected that they often felt uncomfortable with the working environment, mainly due to the lack of air circulation and the stuffy and humid environment.
In addition, 32% of the respondents said that their employers did not regularly arrange staff to take a break in a cool place in hot weather, over 40% said that no drinking water was provided, and over 10% said that no sun hats were provided.
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