Occupational Fatigue and Physical Health of Construction Workers in Extreme Hot Weather

Extreme hot temperatures are considered as occupational hazard. Workers performing for a longer duration in extreme heat are prone to develop various health complications. This is also indicated by increasing number of heat related morbidities and mortalities. Workers exposed to extreme temperatures experience serious health issues like heat cramps, heat edema, and mental health problems like depression. Workers are distracted when performing in extreme temperatures leading to workplace accidents, injuries, and lowers productivity. Health challenges experienced by workers differ based on demographic characteristics, and thus construction sites require strategies tailored to address these vulnerable workers. Therefore, this study focuses to assess workers' health challenges based on various demographic features and develops a model for physical fatigue, workplace injuries of workers performing in extreme temperatures through an online survey questionnaire. Logistic regression was performed on the gathered data. The results revealed that Caucasians are more susceptible to adverse effects of hot weather compared to other ethnicities. A link can be suggested, based on the results of the study, among workers' physical exhaustion and type of working environment, and ethnicity of workers in hot weather conditions. The findings of the study will facilitate professionals in construction industry to improve their heat related policies.