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July 23rd, 2020 | by NEWCA“Thank you 2020!” is becoming quite the catch phrase on social media as well as in many conversations given the unusual nature the year has taken thus far. And with what seems like hotter than usual temps during this Wisconsin summer, it may be taking on even new meaning on job sites.
The construction industry, properly declared “essential” in most states, was among the first to adapt to the onset of the Coronavirus including revising best practices to include social distancing, health checks and the now seemingly ubiquitous face masks.
But according to our friends at ConstructionDive, the law of unintended consequences has struck again. Their recent surveyor of readers found that “nearly 90 percent of readers said that the higher temperatures on job sites made it harder to enforce mask wearing protocols to protect workers from coronavirus.”
Additionally, “94 percent of respondent said that heat in some way impacts their job sites during the summer, with the biggest impact coming from slowed work.”
Construction workers—particularly roofers and road workers—are among the most susceptible to heat stroke and other heat-related illness according to an OSHA report. The wearing of mandatory masks during the hot weather only increases that risk.
The ConstructionDive article details several steps that have been taken to mitigate heat-related risk among construction workers. You can read it here.